BR  146  .KZIj  lyic: 
McGlothlin,  William  Joseph, 

1867-1933. 
The  course  of  Christian 

history 


THE  COURSE 
OF  CHRISTIAN  HISTORY 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

NEW  YORK  •   BOSTON  •   CHICAGO  •   DALLAS 
ATLANTA  •    SAN   FRANCISCO 

MACMILLAN  &  CO.,  Limited 

LONDON  •    BOMBAY  •    CALCUTTA 
MELBOURNE 

THE  MACMILLAN  CO.  OF  CANADA,  Ltd. 

TORONTO 


^^^pnii^Sfr 


<-^ 


DEC   3  191!? 


THE  COURSE\$>,^ 
OF  CHRISTIAN  HIST^K^ 


//'^?r/;?  -^-t*^." 


^ 


BY 


W.  J.  McGLOTHLIN,  Ph.D.,  D.D. 

Professor  of  Church  History  in  the  Southern 
Baptist  Theological  Seminary 


I13eto  gotb 

THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

1918 

AU  rights  reserved 


OOFTKIGHT.  1918 

bt  the  macmillan  company 


S«t  up  and  electrotyped.     Published,    August,    1918 


PREFACE 

Christianity  is  now  nearly  nineteen  centuries  old.  Dur- 
ing this  long  period  it  has  steadily  increased  in  power,  de- 
termining the  beliefs  and  hopes  and  ideals  of  individuals 
and  more  and  more  of  whole  nations.  Judged  from  any 
standpoint  it  must  be  recognized  as  one  of  the  master  forces 
of  mediaeval  and  modern  history  and  of  the  present  day. 
Intelligent  men  ought,  it  would  seem,  to  be  acquainted  with 
the  course  of  its  history,  at  least  in  outline,  through  these 
centuries. 

And  yet  this  history  has  been  comparatively  little  studied, 
and  when  studied  emphasis  has  been  laid  upon  the  darker 
phases  of  the  history,  its  polemical  and  political  sides.  It 
would  seem  that  the  time  has  come  for  an  effort  to  secure 
a  wider  and  more  sympathetic  knowledge  of  what  Chris- 
tianity as  a  whole  has  done  in  the  midst  of  the  weakness  and 
wickedness  of  mankind.  In  a  Christian  land  should  not 
Christian  history  be  regularly  and  sympathetically  taught  in 
all  institutions  of  higher  learning?  Should  not  laymen  as 
well  as  ministers  be  acquainted  in  some  degree  at  least 
with  the  history  of  the  mightiest  single  force  operative  in 
the  life  of  our  day  and  nation?  As  the  study  of  history, 
turning  away  from  the  exclusive  consideration  of  politics  and 
government,  penetrates  more  and  more  into  the  social  and 
moral  life  of  the  people  whence  the  great  national  char- 
acteristics and  motives  spring,  Christianity  must  become  a 
subject  of  more  intense  and  sympathetic  study. 

It  is  the  hope  of  the  author  that  this  little  volume  may  con- 
tribute something  in  this  direction.  Church  history  has  not 
been  written  for  college  students.  It  will  be  years  before 
the  many  excellent  college  text-books  on  general  history  can 


PREFACE 

be  paralleled  by  similar  ones  on  church  history.  But  this 
work  is  intended  primarily  for  college  students.  The  effort 
has  been  made  to  keep  to  the  main  important  phases  of 
Christian  history,  showing  the  course  of  development,  the 
effects  upon  social  life,  etc.  The  continuity  of  Christian 
history  has  been  constantly  in  mind.  At  the  end  of  the 
volume  will  be  found  a  brief  bibliography,  followed  by 
questions  on  the  text  and  topics  for  further  study.  It  is 
hoped  that  these  will  be  suggestive  and  helpful  to  students 
and  instructors  in  the  course  of  their  work. 

While  the  volume  has  been  prepared  primarily  with  the 
need's  of  students  in  mind  it  is  also  hoped  that  it  will 
be  used  in  adult  Bible  classes,  mission  study  classes,  and 
by  individual  men  and  women  who  desire  some  better 
knowledge  of  the  history  of  their  religion.  For  this  reason 
the  text  has  been  kept  free  from  interruptions  by  notes  of 
any  kind,  all  such  matter  being  relegated  to  the  end  of  the 
book.  If  the  volume  contributes  in  any  measure  to  the 
popularizing  of  Christian  history  as  a  source  of  religious 
inspiration  and  cultural  impulse  the  author  will  be  satisfied. 

W.  J.  M. 

Louisville,  June,  1918. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

PAGE 

I  Introduction i-^ 

II  First  Period  —  i  A.  D.  to  too  A.  D.    .     .  8-21 

III  Second  Period—  too  A.  D.  to  323  A.D.  .  22-38 

IV  Third  Period  —  323  A.  D.  to  600  A.  D.    .  39-5i 
V  Fourth  Period  —  600  A.  D.  to  1050  A.  D.  52-68 

VI    Fifth  Period—  1050  A.  D.  to  1300  A.  D.      69-82 

Eastern  Christianity 69  f. 

Western  Christianity 71-82 

VII    Sixth  Period—  1300  A.  D.  to  1517  A.  D.    83-101 

Eastern  Christianity 83-88 

Western  Christianity 88-101 

VIII    Seventh    Period— 1517    A.D.    to    1648 

A.D 102-147 

Roman  Catholic  Church     .      .     103-107,  140-146 

Lutheranism 108-114 

Zwinglianism .   114-117 

Calvinism 117-125 

Anabaptism 125-128 

English  Reformation 128-140 

IX    Eighth    Period— 1648    A.D.    to    1789 

A.D 149-161 

X    Last  Period— 1789  A.D.  to  1917  A.D.  162-252 

General  Characteristics 162-181 

Greek  Catholic  Church 181-187 

Heretical  Churches 187-191 

Roman  Catholic  Church 191-211 

Lutheran  Churches 212-217 

Reformed  or  Presbyterian  Churches  .      .  217-223 

Episcopal  Churches 223-229 

The  Baptists 229-234 

The  Congregationalists 234-237 

The  Methodists 237-241 

American  Christianity 241-251 

Religious  Forces  of  the  World     .      .      .  252 

XI    Questions  and  Topics  for  Study     .     .  253-310 


THE  COURSE  OF 
CHRISTIAN  HISTORY 

INTRODUCTION 

THE  PROPER   CONCEPTION    OF   CHRISTIAN   HISTORY 

The  history  of  Christianity  is  the  story  of  the  origin,  prog- 
ress and  development  of  the  Christian  reUgion,  and  of  its 
influence  upon  the  world.  Almost  nineteen  centuries  have 
passed  since  Jesus  Christ  began  his  public  ministry  for  the 
estabHshment  of  the  religion  which  bears  his  name.  Dur- 
ing this  long  period  Christianity  has  been  more  and  more 
dominating  the  lives  of  men,  illuminating  their  minds, 
strengthening  them  in  their  moral  struggles,  irradiating 
their  hopes,  making  earth  more  tolerable  and  heaven  more 
inviting  and  certain.  The  story  of  this  growing  and  spread- 
ing influence  is  the  external  history  of  Christianity. 

But  as  Christianity  has  expanded  there  has  come  con- 
stant inner  change.  From  the  unity  and  simplicity  of  orig- 
inal Christianity  have  developed  the  multiplicity  of  Chris- 
tian sects  with  their  varied  forms  of  organization  and  wor- 
ship, their  divergent  views  of  theology  and  the  ordinances, 
their  various  types  of  Christian  thought  and  life,  as  we  see 
them  to-day.  The  story  of  these  changes  is  the  inner  his- 
tory of  Christianity. 

There  has  been  no  break  in  this  history.  The  stream 
has  broadened  and  often  grown  muddy,  but  it  has  never 
ceased  to  flow.  To-day  it  is  the  mightiest  force  operative 
in  the  human  race.     In  its  singular  growth  and  life-giving 


2  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

power  it  has  been  like  the  stream  in  Ezekiel's  vision  (Ch.  47) 
or  like  the  stone  cut  out  without  hands  in  the  vision  of 
Daniel  (2  :  31-5).  It  has  ever  flowed  on  and  brought  bless- 
ing, ever  increased  in  might,  until  to-day  it  is  mightier  than 
all  kingdoms. 

THE   V^ORLD   INTO   WHICH    JESUS   CAME 

When  Jesus  came  into  it  the  world  was  already  old. 
Around  the  Mediterranean  Sea  civilizations  had  risen, 
flourished,  decayed  and  fallen.  Egypt,  Babylonia,  Assyria 
and  Persia  had  played  their  parts  on  the  world's  stage  and 
passed  on.  Greece  and  Rome  were  the  great  world  powers 
at  the  beginning  of  our  religion.  All  the  civilized  peoples 
of  southern  Europe,  western  Asia  and  northern  Africa  were 
under  the  political  sway  of  Rome  who  was  then  the  mistress 
of  the  western  half  of  the  civilized  world.  Outside  the 
Roman  empire  there  were  various  barbarous  and  savage 
peoples  who  were  to  play  a  large  part  in  the  future  history 
of  civilization,  but  who  at  that  time  were  negligible.  India, 
China  and  Japan,  lying  far  to  the  east,  and  little  known  in 
the  West,  constituted  the  eastern  half  of  the  civilized  world. 

Christianity  was  born  near  the  heart  of  the  Roman 
Empire  and  remained  within  its  boundaries  for  some  five 
centuries.  This  empire  contained  from  fifty  to  seventy-five 
millions  of  people  of  various  nationalities,  speaking  dijTer- 
ent  languages  and  possessing  unequal  degrees  of  culture. 
The  ruling  race  was  the  Roman.  Their  home  was  in  Italy, 
but  they  had  conquered  all  the  lands  around  the  Mediter- 
ranean Sea  and  throughout  the  whole  of  this  vast  territory 
they  were  the  civil  and  military  officials.  Their  language, 
the  Latin,  was  the  language  of  Italy,  north  Africa,  Spain 
and  Gaul.  They  established  peace  and  order  throughout 
the  empire,  built  good  roads,  fostered  trade  and  travel,  made 
intercourse  easy  and  safe,  often  protected  the  missionaries 


INTRODUCTION  3 

from  the  fury  of  mobs.  Beyond  doubt  the  empire  was  a 
providential  preparation  for  the  spread  of  the  gospel  in  the 
early  centuries ;  Latins  furnished  the  missionaries  who  car- 
ried the  gospel  to  the  western  half  of  the  empire,  the  Latin 
language  became  the  vehicle  of  theology  and  worship  for 
this  half  of  the  world  and  ultimately  for  the  whole  Roman 
Catholic  church ;  the  empire  furnished  the  molds  into  which 
Christianity  was  poured  to  form  the  Roman  Catholic  church 
which  in  its  government  is  but  a  reproduction  of  the  im- 
perial government. 

The  Greeks  had  their  home  In  Greece  and  the  Islands  of 
the  ^gean  Sea,  but  they  had  spread  through  trade,  con- 
quest and  colonization  over  Asia  Minor,  Syria,  northern 
Palestine,  lower  Egypt,  southern  Italy,  Sicily  and  some  were 
found  in  southern  Gaul.  They  were  the  most  cultivated 
people  of  the  time.  Their  beautiful  and  flexible  language, 
rich  in  literature  and  the  power  of  expression,  was  so  widely 
distributed  as  to  form  a  sort  of  universal  language  in  the 
eastern  part  of  the  empire.  Apparently  all  the  apostles  and 
early  missionaries  spoke  this  language  and  the  New  Testa- 
ment was  written  in  Greek.  For  two  and  a  half  centuries 
all  the  important  Christian  literature  was  produced  in  this 
language.  The  earliest  Christian  scholars  and  schools  were 
Greek  and  the  Greek  genius  gave  tone  to  Christianity  in  the 
East  for  many  centuries.  Early  theology  was  all  written  in 
Greek. 

The  Jews  were  the  third  important  race  of  the  Roman 
empire.  They  had  their  home  in  Palestine,  but  had  been 
dispersed  through  trade  and  captivity  until  they  constituted 
an  important  element  in  all  the  principal  cities  of  the  empire. 
They  were  preeminently  a  city  folk,  devoted  to  trade  and 
banking.  They  lived  apart  from  Gentile  society,  feared 
and  despised  by  their  neighbors,  haughtily  preserving  their 
social  and  religious  exclusiveness.  The  synagogue  was  the 
center  of  worship  and  instruction,  where  the  Old  Testament 
Scriptures  were  read  every  Sabbath  and  a  pure  religious 
and  moral  life  was  set  forth  and  emphasized.     Living  among 


4  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

polytheists  and  idolaters  they  held  forth  a  pure  monotheism 
—  belief  in  a  righteous  and  almighty  God  who  made  and 
rules  the  world  and  demands  holiness  in  men.  The  majority 
of  them  expected  a  Messiah  who  would  reign  at  Jerusalem 
and  would  usher  in  the  Messianic  age  of  peace  and  happi- 
ness, power  and  glory,  for  the  Jewish  people.  Many  of  the 
heathen  had  been  deeply  affected  by  their  synagogue  wor- 
ship and  some  had  become  converts  to  the  Jewish  religion. 
They  were  known  as  "  proselytes  "  or  "  devout  men  "  and 
furnished  many  converts  to  early  Christianity.  Paul  and 
probably  other  missionaries  first  went  to  the  synagogue  on 
beginning  work  in  a  new  city,  and  turned  to  the  Gentiles 
only  when  hostility  developed  so  as  to  make  further  work 
among  the  Jews  difficult  or  impossible. 


§3 

ECONOMIC   AND   CULTURAL   CONDITIONS 

The  masses  of  the  people  throughout  the  empire  were 
distressingly  poor ;  beggars  were  everywhere.  On  the  other 
hand,  many  of  the  Romans  were  enormously  wealthy,  made 
so  by  conquest,  graft  and  extortion.  Slaves  were  very  nu- 
merous, constituting  the  chief  element  of  productive  labor 
among 'the  Romans.  They  were  white  captives,  taken  in 
war,  and  their  descendants,  and  were  often  highly  cultivated 
people.  Not  infrequently  they  were  used  as  tutors  and 
teachers  by  their  masters.  This  slave  population  f^urnished 
a  large  element  of  the  early  Christians,  not  seldom  officers 
of  the  church. 

The  golden  age  of  Greek  literature  was  past.  Homer, 
Sophocles,  Euripides,  Plato,  Aristotle,  Demosthenes  were 
long  since  dead.  Their  works  were  eagerly  studied,  but  no 
other  writers  of  equal  ability  appeared.  The  Jezvs  pro- 
duced but  one  or  two  writers  of  any  note  after  the  birth  of 
Christ.  The  Latins,  on  the  other  hand,  were  still  in  their 
productive  period.     Caesar,  Cicero  and  Virgil  had  been  dead 


INTRODUCTION  5 

but  a  few  years  and  important  writers  of  the  Latin  lan- 
guage were  yet  to  arise. 

While  there  were  many  men  of  broad  culture  the  masses 
of  the  people  were  generally  illiterate.  Books  were  few 
and  costly.  There  was  no  system  of  public  schools ;  private 
teachers  and  tutors  furnished  all  the  instruction  that  was 
offered.  There  were  a  few  great  libraries  as  at  Alexan- 
dria and  some  institutions  that  might  justly  be  called  uni- 
versities as  at  Athens,  Tarsus  and  Alexandria.  The  Greeks 
were  the  great  schoolmasters  of  the  world.  The  Jews  in- 
structed their  children  at  home  and  in  the  synagogue  in  the 
Old  Testament  Scriptures  and  in  some  trade.  The  courses 
of  study  offered  in  the  heathen  schools  affected  them  very 
little  if  at  all. 


§4 

MORAL  AND   RELIGIOUS    CONDITIONS 

Morals  were  bad  enough.  Poverty  and  war,  political 
graft  and  the  abuse  of  power,  slavery,  ignorance,  bad  hous- 
ing, a  hot  climate,  debasing  amusements  and  other  things 
combined  to  weaken  the  moral  sensibilities  that  men  ordi- 
narily have.  Vice,  drunkenness,  gambling,  dishonesty,  rob- 
bery and  cruelty  were  frightfully  prevalent.  Abortion  and 
the  exposure  or  murder  of  unwelcome  children  were  so 
common  as  to  cause  little  comment.  The  theater,  the  gladia- 
torial shows  and  the  races  were  as  demoralizing  as  amuse- 
ments can  well  be.  The  marriage  vow  was  lightly  regarded 
and  divorce  was  frequent. 

Every  people,  tribe  and  city  had  its  religion,  but  there 
was  little  moral  tonic  in  any  of  them.  Moral  and  religious 
ideas  were  in  utter  confusion  and  the  hope  of  immortality 
was  exceedingly  vague  and  the  future  unattractive.  There 
were  lords  many  and  gods  many,  male  and  female  divinities, 
great  gods  of  the  nation  and  little  gods  for  the  household 
and   the   common   affairs   of    daily    life.     The   worshipers 


6  THE    COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

erected  magnificent  temples,  chiseled  beautiful  and  impres- 
sive images,  supported  numerous  priesthoods,  observed  with 
painful  care  the  ornate  ritual  and  impressive  ceremonies  of 
public  v^^orship,  pried  into  the  future  through  divination 
and  soothsaying,  offered  multitudes  of  sacrifices  to  appease 
the  gods  whose  help  they  implored  in  all  the  affairs  of  life, 
both  public  and  private.  Religion  entered  into  every  de- 
tail of  life;  but  the  gods  were  themselves  believed  to  be 
immoral  and  religion  made  slight  demands  upon  the  ethical 
sense  of  the  people.  There  was  little  social  worship  or 
religious  instruction  except  by  a  few  wandering  philosophers, 
no  sacred  books  as  among  the  Jews  and  other  Oriental  peo- 
ples, no  inculcation  of  the  lessons  of  love  and  right  living 
with  which  we  are  so  familiar  in  Christianity.  The  gods 
were  feared  rather  than  loved  and  hostile  and  dangerous 
spirits  were  felt  to  be  everywhere ;  the  world  was  thought 
to  be  full  of  demons.  The  Jews  of  course  held  aloof  from 
all  this  pagan  religion  and  in  general  lived  on  a  higher 
moral  plane  than  their  heathen  neighbors  whom  they  usually 
heartily  despised. 


§5 

PHILOSOPHY 

Philosophy  was  the  religion  of  the  more  cultivated  heathen 
of  that  day.  Very  many  of  them  had  lost  all  belief  in  the 
popular  religions  with  their  superstitions,  absurd  myths 
and  low  moral  ideals.  They  found  a  higher  faith  and  a 
stronger  support  for  the  moral  life  in  the  speculations  of 
philosophy.  One  of  the  early  Christian  fathers  declared 
that  philosophy  was  a  schoolmaster  to  bring  the  Greek  to 
Christ  even  as  the  law  brought  the  Jew.  All  forms  of 
philosophy  rejected  more  or  less  openly  the  trivialities  and 
puerilities  of  the  popular  faiths,  and  sought  to  find  a 
higher  view  of  God  and  the  universe.  Plato  probably  gave 
the  world  the  most  spiritual  and  satisfying  view  of   the 


INTRODUCTION  7 

universe  that  the  human  mind,  unaided  by  divine  revela- 
tion, ever  attained.  Some  of  his  arguments  for  immortal- 
ity are  still  advanced  by  the  Christian  thinkers  of  the  pres- 
ent time. 

But  philosophy  was  for  the  gifted  and  cultured;  the 
common  man  saw  only  that  it  destroyed  his  faith  without 
giving  him  anything  in  return.  Its  intellectualism  was  be- 
yond him.  And  so  the  masses  were  growing  skeptical  and 
more  immoral.  The  world  was  religiously  and  morally 
bankrupt,  the  deity  himself  must  intervene.  The  fullness  of 
the  times  had  come. 


FIRST  PERIOD—  I  TO  loo A.D. 

THE  PLANTING  OF  CHRISTIANITY 

§6 

THE   CHARACTER  OF  THIS   CENTURY 

The  political  and  social  life  of  the  first  century  of  the 
Christian  era  was  fairly  stable.  The  Roman  republic  was 
rapidly  transformed  into  an  empire  with  the  emperor 
supreme  in  power  and  deified  after  death,  but  this  change 
did  not  greatly  affect  the  condition  of  the  people.  Several 
of  the  emperors  were  monsters  of  wickedness,  notably 
Nero  under  whose  reign  Paul  did  most  of  his  work  and 
at  whose  hands  he  suffered  death.  There  was  compara- 
tively little  war  in  this  century.  The  rebellion  of  the 
Jews  in  a.  d.  70  brought  upon  them  a  terrible  punishment. 
Jerusalem  was  burned  and  the  temple  was  finally  destroyed 
never  to  be  rebuilt.  Those  who  survived  were  banished 
from  the  country.  This  brought  to  an  end  all  semblance 
of  Jewish  national  life  which  has  never  been  reestablished. 
Since  that  date  the  Jew  has  been  a  "  man  without  a  coun- 
try." Rome  was  burned  in  a.  d.  64  and  splendidly  rebuilt  by 
Nero.  Responsibility  for  the  great  catastrophe  was  laid 
by  him  at  the  door  of  the  Christians  of  Rome  upon  whom  he 
inflicted  terrible  persecutions.  But  on  the  whole  the  cen- 
tury was  not  unfavorable  for  the  prosecution  of  success- 
ful Christian  work. 

§7 

CHRISTIANITY   PLANTED 

It  was  into  this  wonderful  world  that  the  new  leaven  of 
Christianity    was    thrust.     What    was    it?    As    a    historic 

8 


THE   PLANTING   OF   CHRISTIANITY  9 

force  it  was  a  new  religion  brought  to  the  world  by  a  Jew, 
Jesus  of  Nazareth.  He  was  of  lowly  origin,  a  carpenter  by 
trade  till  he  was  about  thirty  years  of  age,  a  countryman 
of  the  hills  of  Galilee,  and  the  beginnings  of  his  movement 
were  among  the  working  people  of  that  region. 

He  was  preceded  by  a  young  man  of  the  hill  country  of 
Judea,  a  strange  character  who  had  spent  many  years  away 
from  the  haunts  of  men  in  the  desert  of  Judea.  About  the 
year  twenty-six  this  forerunner  appeared  on  the  borders  of 
civilization  and  began  to  preach  what  was  virtually  a  new 
religion.  Though  he  was  a  priest  by  birth  he  ignored  the 
temple  and  the  national  ceremonial  religion  of  his  people 
altogether,  and  began  to  proclaim  repentance  by  the  individ- 
ual as  the  basis  of  acceptance  with  God.  Descent  from 
Abraham,  that  is  Jewish  blood,  was  altogether  insufficient. 
The  kingdom  of  God  was  at  hand  and  men  must  repent  in 
order  to  enter  in,  and  repentance  must  bring  forth  fruit  in 
holy  living. 

Still  further  he  declared  that  the  Messiah,  long  ex- 
pected, was  about  to  appear  with  his  fan  in  his  hand  to 
cleanse  his  threshing  floor,  gathering  the  wheat  into  his 
garner  and  burning  up  the  chaff  with  unquenchable  fire. 
He  baptized  in  the  Jordan  and  declared  that  the  Messiah 
would  baptize  in  the  Holy  Spirit  and  in  fire.  Finally  he 
baptized  Jesus  and  forty  days  afterwards  declared  to  his 
own  disciples  that  this  Jesus  was  the  Messiah,  "  the  lamb 
of  God  that  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world."  Soon 
afterwards  he  was  thrown  into  prison  for  criticizing  the 
marriage  of  the  governor  and  after  a  few  months  imprison- 
ment he  was  beheaded. 

John's  views  were  not  new.  They  are  found  in  the 
spiritual  teachings  of  the  Old  Testament,  especially  in  the 
prophets  and  the  Psalms.  But  they  were  new  in  their  nega- 
tion of  the  racial  and  ceremonial  basis  of  religion,  and  in 
their  emphasis  upon  the  inner  preparation  of  the  heart. 
To  him  religion  was  personal  and  spiritual.  He  used  as 
his  only  ceremony  baptism  which  at  the  command  of  God 


lO  THE    COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

he  had  either  adopted  from  the  Jews  or  instituted  anew. 
The  basis  of  his  baptism  was  not  racial  descent  from 
Abraham,  as  was  the  case  with  circumcision,  but  repentance 
toward  God  attested  by  righteous  living. 

Jesus  allied  himself  with  John  and  his  movement  by 
requesting  and  accepting  baptism  at  his  hands.  He  was 
then  about  thirty  years  of  age,  having  spent  these  years 
in  the  quiet  life  of  the  village  of  Nazareth  whose  reputa- 
tion was  apparently  none  too  good.  Jesus  linked  his  work 
directly  on  to  that  of  John  by  taking  up  identically  the 
same  message,  that  is  a  call  to  repentance  on  the  basis  of 
the  nearness  of  the  kingdom.  His  early  message,  "  Repent 
ye,  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  at  hand,"  sounds  like  an 
echo  of  John's  cry  in  the  wilderness.  He  came  because 
of  the  world's  sin,  to  seek  and  to  save  the  lost,  to  revolu- 
tionize and  remake  the  world.  He  came  as  a  Jew  among 
the  Jews,  confining  his  earthly  ministry  to  *'  the  lost  sheep 
of  the  house  of  Israel."  He  assumed  the  divine  origin  and 
truth  of  the  spiritual  teachings  of  the  Old  Testament,  build- 
ing upon  the  foundation  of  Moses  and  the  prophets.  He 
said  nothing  directly  for  or  against  the  ceremonial  law,  but 
actually  gave  expression  to  principles  that  must  in  the 
course  of  time  nullify  it.  During  the  three  years  of  his 
public  activities  he  lived  a  spotless  and  winsome  life  among 
men,  calling  them  to  repentance  and  higher  living,  inculcat- 
ing faith  in  God  and  in  himself,  helping  men  in  every  pos- 
sible way.  He  taught  as  one  having  authority,  enlarging 
and  spiritualizing  men's  conception  of  God  and  his  wor- 
ship, elevating  and  sanctifying  all  human  relations;  he 
wrought  miracles,  denounced  the  self-righteous  Pharisees, 
but  showed  pity  and  compassion  to  the  penitent  outcasts 
of  society.  He  taught  much  concerning  himself,  declaring 
that  he  was  the  son  of  God,  the  son  of  man,  the  Messiah, 
the  fulfillment  of  prophecy ;  he  foretold  his  death  and  the 
manner  of  it,  foretold  his  resurrection  and  ascension  and 
declared  that  he  would  come  again  to  judge  the  living  and 


THE   PLANTING   OF   CHRISTIANITY  II 

the  dead.     His  goal  was  the  kingdom  of  God  as  a  living  real- 
ity among  men. 

Opposition  to  him  began  early  and  increased  in  bitter- 
ness till  at  last  it  brought  him  to  death  on  a  Roman  cross. 
The  third  day  the  sealed  and  guarded  tomb  was  found 
empty.  During  the  next  forty  days  those  who  had  known 
him  best  in  life  became  convinced  that  he  had  risen  from 
the  dead  with  a  new  and  wonderful  body ;  they  saw  him  re- 
peatedly, heard  him  teach,  examined  his  wounds,  saw  him 
appear  and  disappear.  Above  five  hundred  brethren  had 
seen  him  at  one  time;  there  could  be  no  doubt  as  to  his 
identity.  And  yet  how  greatly  he  was  changed!  At  last 
they  saw  him  rise  from  the  earth  and  disappear  in  the 
heavens.  So  ended  his  earthly  career.  He  had  confined  his 
ministry  to  the  Jews,  to  the  northern  part  of  the  little  coun- 
try of  Palestine,  to  the  comparatively  poor  and  uneducated ; 
he  had  written  nothing  nor  commanded  any  one  else  to 
write;  he  had  erected  no  buildings  or  schools,  enlisted  no 
wealth  or  worldly  influence.  He  had  merely  created  a  new 
life  in  a  few  ordinary  human  beings  and  had  commanded 
them  to  go  and  make  the  rest  of  the  world  into  disciples 
like  themselves,  promising  at  the  same  time  to  be  with 
them  all  the  days.  "  All  authority  hath  been  given  unto 
me  in  heaven  and  on  earth.  Go  ye  therefore,  and  make 
disciples  of  all  the  nations." 

§8 

CHRISTIANITY   AS   A   HISTORIC   FORCE 

What  then  was  this  new  and  mighty  force  now  let  loose 
in  the  world?  In  a  word  it  was  a  new  type  of  life,  based 
upon  a  new  faith  and  inspired  by  a  new  hope,  all  mediated 
to  the  world  by  Jesus  of  Nazareth.  It  is  not  meant  that 
all  the  elements  of  Christianity  were  entirely  new  to  the 
world.     Perhaps  none  of  them  were  absolutely  new,   for 


12  THE  COURSE  OF  CHRISTIAN   HISTORY 

the  world  had  long  been  feeling  after  God  and  he  had  won- 
derfully revealed  himself  to  the  law-givers  and  prophets 
and  psalmists  of  old.  But  the  grand  total  was  new.  Jesus 
Christ  "  brought  life  and  immortality  to  light  through  the 
gospel,"  that  is  he  illuminated  them  and  made  them  definite, 
clear  and  attractive. 

Christianity  as  a  force  was  primarily  a  new  type  of  life  — 
a  life  of  holiness,  love  and  service.  Its  first  demand  was 
personal  holiness  and  right  relations  with  one's  fellows ; 
this  holiness  was  irradiated  with  love  to  God  and  to  men 
and  the  love  expressed  itself  by  bountiful  service  to  all 
men.  All  men  were  recognized  as  the  handiwork  of  the 
same  loving  Creator  and  hence  as  essentially  brothers,  what- 
ever their  race,  color  or  present  condition.  Christians  con- 
stituted a  great  fraternal  body  bound  together  by  a  like- 
mindedness  in  spiritual  things.  So  distinctly  did  the  Christ- 
ians manifest  a  new  type  of  life  that  they  were  often  called 
*'  the  third  race." 

This  new  type  of  life  was  based  upon  a  fuller  and  clearer 
faith  in  God,  in  his  love  toward  all  men,  than  the  world  had 
ever  before  possessed.  It  was  also  illuminated  by  a  clearer 
and  more  rational  and  attractive  hope  of  immortality  than 
they  had  ever  before  had.  For  the  first  time  heaven  and 
the  future  world  became  really  luminous  and  alluring.  All 
of  life  was  glorified  and  made  bearable  by  this  hope. 

But  possibly  the  most  distinctive  thing  about  Christianity 
was  the  fact  that  all  these  spiritual  riches  in  their  fulhiess 
and  relations  were  mediated  to  men  by  Jesus  Christ.  It  was 
this  that  made  it  Christianity.  It  was  Jesus  that  set  these 
truths  forth  and  gave  to  men  the  power,  first  to  accept  them 
as  the  ideal  of  life  and  then  in  some  measure  to  attain  to 
their  ideal.  And  on  down  to  the  present  the  world  is  de- 
pendent on  him  for  these  views  and  hopes.  They  do  not 
exist  where  he  is  not  known.  What  we  are  spiritually  we 
owe  to  him. 


THE   PLANTING   OF   CHRISTIANITY  I3 

§9 

SPREAD  OF   CHRISTIANITY  —  MISSIONS 

Jesus  had  conlined  his  ministry  with  slight  exceptions  to 
the  Jews  of  northern  Palestine.  But  he  had  spent  much 
of  the  latter  part  of  his  life  in  training  a  few  men  to  carry 
forward  the  work  when  he  was  gone.  His  very  last  in- 
junction was  that  they  should  wait  in  Jerusalem  till  they 
were  endued  with  sufficient  power  by  the  Holy  Spirit  and 
should  then  go  forth  to  make  disciples  of  the  whole  world. 
Ten  days  after  his  ascension  the  power  came  on  the  group 
at  Jerusalem  by  such  unmistakable  signs  as  to  eliminate  all 
doubt  that  Jesus  was  at  the  right  hand  of  the  Father.  Three 
thousand  were  added  that  day.  Following  this  great  initial 
impulse  their  numbers  increased  rapidly  and  soon  there  were 
five  thousand  men  in  the  Jerusalem  church,  and  doubtless 
many  women  (Acts  4:4).  Soon  afterwards  we  learn  that 
"  a  great  company  of  the  priests  were  obedient  to  the  faith  " 
(Acts  6:7).  Persecution  broke  out  but  did  not  retard  the 
growth  seriously  for  some  time.  Finally  the  zeal  and  abil- 
ity of  Stephen,  a  Grecian  Jew  who  was  one  of  seven  men 
chosen  by  the  church  to  superintend  the  distribution  of 
its  alms,  provoked  a  general  and  very  bitter  persecution. 
Stephen  and  possibly  others  lost  their  lives,  and  the  church 
was  scattered.  The  vigor  of  this  persecution  was  probably 
due  to  an  aristocratic  young  Pharisee  of  Tarsus  named 
Saul.  He  was  born  a  Roman  citizen  and  was  educated  at 
the  feet  of  Gamaliel  in  Jerusalem.  This  young  man  was 
"  exceedingly  mad  "  against  them  and  "  made  havoc  "  of  the 
church. 

The  hour  had  now  come  when  the  Christians,  who  were 
still  tarrying  in  Jerusalem,  were  compelled  to  set  forth  into 
the  world.  PhiHp  went  down  to  Samaria  where  he  was 
marvelously  successful  in  this  first  attempt  to  preach  the 
gospel  beyond  the  Jewish  fold.  It  aroused  so  much  ap- 
prehension at  Jerusalem  that  Peter  and  John  were  sent  down 


14  THE    COURSE    OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

to  investigate  (Acts  8:4-24).  They  approved  the  work 
and  what  was  more  important  they  themselves  "  preached 
the  gospel  to  many  of  the  villages  of  the  Samaritans." 

Shortly  afterwards  Peter,  who  had  at  last  gotten  out  into 
the  country  as  far  as  Joppa,  was  led  by  the  invitation  of  a 
centurion,  supported  by  a  vision  vouchsafed  to  himself,  to 
preach  the  gospel  to  some  Roman  officers  and  soldiers  at 
Csesarea  the  civil  and  military  capital  of  the  country.  To 
the  amazement  of  himself  and  the  Christian  brethren  who 
were  with  him  the  Holy  Spirit  fell  on  these  Gentiles,  and 
they  spake  with  tongues  as  the  Jewish  Christians  had  done 
at  Pentecost.  This  manifestation  of  divine  approval  led 
Peter  to  propose  baptism  for  them  and  as  nobody  had  the 
courage  to  object  he  instructed  them  to  be  baptized  (Acts 
Ch.  10).  It  was  a  clear  case  of  divine  leading,  but  it 
occasioned  acute  concern  at  Jerusalem.  When  Peter  re- 
turned they  "  contended  with  him  saying,  Thou  wentest  in 
to  men  uncircumcised  and  didst  eat  with  them  " ;  but  when 
Peter  explained  all  the  circumstances  they  **  held  their  peace, 
and  glorified  God,  saying,  Then  to  the  Gentiles  also  hath 
God  granted  repentance  unto  life"  (Acts  11 :  1-18).  Here 
for  the  first  time  the  gospel  was  preached  to  out  and  out 
Gentiles  (Samaritans  were  half  Jews),  a  proceeding  which 
had  only  the  reluctant  approval  of  the  Jerusalem  church. 
This  experience,  clearly  providential  as  it  was,  led  to  no 
effort  at  regular  work  among  the  Gentiles. 

Sometime  after  this  incident  a  more  consistent  attempt 
was  made  towards  the  evangelization  of  the  Gentiles,  this 
time  among  the  Greeks.  Some  of  those  who  were  driven 
away  from  Jerusalem  by  the  persecution  that  arose  at  the 
death  of  Stephen  were  natives  of  Cyprus  and  Cyrene.  Hav- 
ing lived  among  Gentiles  they  probably  had  less  prejudice 
than  those  who  lived  at  Jerusalem.  At  any  rate  when  they 
arrived  at  Antioch  in  their  flight  they  began  to  preach  to 
the  Greeks ;  these  responded  readily,  so  that  "  a  great  num- 
ber that  believed  turned  unto  the  Lord."  This  was  evi- 
dently a  sustained  and  consistent  effort  to  bring  Greeks  to  a 


THE   PLANTING   OF   CHRISTIANITY  I5 

saving  knowledge  of  the  gospel.  Again  it  created  anxiety 
in  Jerusalem  and  Barnabas  was  sent  forth  to  investigate; 
"  who  when  he  was  come,  and  had  seen  the  grace  of  God, 
was  glad;  and  he  exhorted  them  all,  that  with  purpose  of 
heart  they  would  cleave  unto  the  Lord."  He  threw  himself 
into  the  effort,  apparently  without  even  returning  to  Jerusa- 
lem to  report,  and  soon  a  great  work  was  in  progress  (Acts 
II : 19-24). 

§10 

Saul's  conversion  and  work 

In  the  meantime  the  persecutor  Saul  had  himself  been 
wonderfully  converted  and  had  at  once  given  himself  to 
preaching,  first  at  Damascus,  then  in  Arabia,  at  Damascus 
again,  then  in  Jerusalem.  On  account  of  dangerous  opposi- 
tion at  this  point  he  had  been  sent  back  to  Tarsus  his  old 
home  where  he  disappeared  from  view  for  some  years,  but 
doubtless  he  was  actively  engaged  in  evangelizing. 

Barnabas,  finding  the  work  at  Antioch  too  heavy  for  him, 
goes  over  to  Tarsus  and  fetches  Saul.  For  a  year  they 
wrought  together  in  the  great  Syrian  metropolis,  making 
such  a  profound  impression  that  the  disciples  now  began  to 
be  called  Christians.  They  also  manifested  that  broad  spirit 
of  helpfulness  that  has  so  graciously  marked  the  course  of 
Christian  history,  by  sending  a  contribution  to  the  suffering 
saints  at  Jerusalem,  the  first  instance  of  such  Christian 
charity. 

Up  to  this  time  the  spread  of  Christianity  had  not  been 
planned  by  the  disciples,  as  far  as  we  can  see,  but  had  been 
forced  upon  them  by  leadings  of  Providence.  We  have 
now  reached  the  point  where  there  seems  to  be  definite 
planning  of  the  work.  While  the  leaders  of  the  church  at 
Antioch  "  ministered  to  the  Lord  and  fasted,"  probably 
seeking  divine  direction  in  the  prosecution  of  the  work,  '*  the 
Holy  Spirit  said.  Separate  me  Barnabas  and  Saul  for  the 
work  whereunto  I  have  called  them"  (Acts  13:2).     It  is 


l6  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

probable  that  Saul  was  the  moving  spirit  in  this  new  ad- 
venture. In  obedience  to  this  divine  call  the  two  set  forth 
on  the  first  missionary  journey,  probably  guided  in  the 
choice  of  direction  by  the  location  of  the  homes  and  ac- 
quaintances of  the  two  missionaries  themselves,  Barnabas 
being  from  the  island  of  Cyprus  and  Saul  from  Tarsus 
with  a  possible  acquaintance  with  the  towns  of  Derbe, 
Lystra  and  Iconium.  The  experiences  of  the  journey  are 
related  in  such  detail  in  Acts  13  and  14  that  they  need  not 
be  repeated  here.  Both  Jews  and  Greeks  were  converted 
in  large  numbers,  but  the  Jewish  authorities  were  quick  and 
determined  in  their  opposition.  At  Antioch  in  Pisidia  the 
missionaries  turned  definitely  to  the  Gentiles.  Jews  and 
Gentiles  were  treated  alike  in  the  ordinances  and  organiza- 
tion of  the  churches.  Elders  were  appointed  for  every 
church,  so  as  to  conserve  the  work  and  lay  a  foundation  for 
its  further  spread. 

Paul  made  two  other  long  missionary  journeys  through 
Asia  Minor  and  into  southeastern  Europe  traversing 
Macedonia  and  Greece  as  far  south  as  Athens  and  Corinth 
and  probably  reaching  the  shores  of  the  Adriatic.  At  the 
end  of  the  third  journey  he  was  mobbed  at  Jerusalem  where 
he  had  gone  with  a  large  collection  which  he  had  gathered 
for  the  poor  from  the  churches  of  Asia  Minor  and  Greece 
(Acts  16:1  to  21:30).  He  was  rescued  by  the  Romans 
from  the  fury  of  the  Jews  who  would  have  murdered  him, 
but  was  held  prisoner  at  Csesarea  by  the  venal  governor 
Felix.  On  the  accession  of  a  new  governor  Festus  the 
Jews  renewed  their  efforts  to  get  their  hands  on  Paul  who 
saved  himself  by  appealing  to  Rome  to  be  tried  before  the 
emperor.  At  Rome  he  was  held  prisoner  at  least  two  years 
longer,  but  had  considerable  freedom  and  was  able  to  do 
much  preaching.  After  this  he  seems  to  have  been  released, 
to  have  returned  to  the  East,  to  have  been  rearrested,  and 
finally  executed  near  Rome  where  a  great  church  bearing  his 
name  stands  over  the  spot  which  is  supposed  to  be  his  grave. 

About  the  work  of  the  twelve  apostles  other  than  Peter, 


THE   PLANTING   OF    CHRISTIANITY  I7 

we  know  almost  nothing.  Later  tradition  has  undertaken 
to  fill  out  our  knowledge  by  assigning  extensive  mission 
work  to  most  of  them.  These  traditions  are  utterly  worth- 
less as  history  though  there  may  be  some  grains  of  truth  in 
some  of  them.  Peter  is  said  to  have  made  his  way  to  the 
West  and  to  have  been  executed  by  crucifixion  with  his  head 
downward  at  Rome  where  the  greatest  church  building  in 
the  world  is  named  for  him.  John  is  said  to  have  lived 
almost  to  the  end  of  the  first  century  and  to  have  died 
finally  at  Ephesus. 

What  is  certain  is  that  by  the  end  of  the  first  century 
Christianity  was  firmly  established  in  most  if  not  all  the 
great  cities  of  the  empire,  that  it  had  spread  into  many  of 
the  smaller  towns  and  even  into  the  country  districts.  In 
some  sections  Christians  constituted  a  large  and  influential 
element  in  society. 


§11 

THE   CHURCHES 

Organisation  is  necessary  to  success  in  any  great  task 
and  so  we  very  early  find  the  Christians  organized  into 
bodies  which  they  called  ecclesiae,  a  word  which  is  translated 
into  English  by  the  word  churches.  The  basis  of  organiza- 
tion was  fraternal  equality.  *'  Call  no  man  your  father,  for 
one  is  your  Master  and  all  ye  are  brethren."  This  is  funda- 
mental democracy,  and  these  early  churches  were  undoubt- 
edly democracies  in  principle  and  as  far  as  possible  in  prac- 
tice. Paul  appointed  elders  for  the  churches,  but  it  must 
have  been  in  consultation  with  the  brethren  in  whose  hands 
the  ultimate  authority  rested.  The  churches  were  bodies  of 
regenerated  people,  brought  together  by  spiritual  likemind- 
edness,  for  the  fulfillment  of  the  purposes  of  the  kingdom  of 
God.  All  the  Christians  of  a  city  constituted  the  church  of 
that  city,  as  the  church  at  Jerusalem,  Ephesus  or  Corinth, 


1 8  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN   HISTORY 

and  must  have  had  several  places  of  worship  and  often 
thousands  of  members. 

Apparently  all  the  churches  had  two  classes  of  officers: 
Elders  (also  called  bishops  or  ministers  or  pastors)  and 
deacons.  These  officers  attended  to  all  the  affairs  of  the 
church,  not  to  the  exclusion  of  the  laity  nor  in  the  way  of 
lording  it  over  the  church,  but  as  brethren  chosen  by  their 
equals  to  perform  certain  duties  on  behalf  of  the  church. 
They  had  no  priestly  functions  and  were  answerable  to 
the  congregation.  Apostles,  prophets  and  evangelists  ap- 
parently exercised  their  functions  by  direct  divine  appoint- 
ment and  were  not  answerable  to  the  churches  or  sent  forth 
by  them.     They  seem  to  have  traveled  most  of  the  time. 

The  worship  was  very  simple  and  democratic.  There 
was  singing  and  prayer,  reading  from  the  Old  Testament 
and  the  books  of  the  New  as  they  appeared,  with  exhorta- 
tion. The  formal  sermon  did  not  appear  till  later.  These 
services  were  much  like  our  modern  prayer-meetings  with 
some  enthusiasm  injected  into  them.  The  services  often 
if  not  usually  took  place  at  night,  on  the  first  day  of  the 
week  called  the  *'  Lord's  day  "  because  of  the  resurrection 
and  appearances  of  our  Lord  on  that  day.  Some  of  the 
Jewish  Christians  continued  to  worship  on  the  seventh  day 
or  Jewish  sabbath. 

The  Lord's  supper  was  celebrated  with  bread  and  wine 
as  the  memorial  of  the  Lord's  death.  At  Corinth  and  possi- 
bly elsewhere  there  was  a  meal  in  connection  with  the  sup- 
per. Baptism  was  administered  to  believers  only,  by 
immersion  in  water,  in  the  name  of  Jesus  or  the  Trinity.  It 
was  a  pictorial  confession  of  faith,  setting  forth  the  essen- 
tials of  Christian  belief,  symbolizing  the  burial  and  resur- 
rection of  Christ,  the  great  spiritual  change  of  death  to  the 
old  life  and  resurrection  to  a  new  life  in  the  individual,  and 
doubtless  looked  forward  to  the  resurrection  of  our  own 
bodies.  There  is  no  evidence  that  anybody  was  admitted  to 
fellowship  in  the  churches  without  first  accepting  baptism  as 
a  bond  of  fellowship  and  a  badge  of  unity. 


THE   PLANTING  OF   CHRISTIANITY  IQ 

§12 
DIFFICULTIES   AND  DANGERS 

The  first  great  danger  arose  over  the  relation  of  the 
Gentile  Christians  to  the  Jewish  system.  The  Jewish 
Christians  naturally  regarded  Christianity  as  the  continua- 
tion of  the  Jewish  religion.  Jesus  had  never  formally 
abolished  the  law,  and  they  naturally  regarded  its  observance 
as  still  binding.  They  accepted  Jesus  as  the  Messiah  and 
believed  that  Jews  were  to  be  saved  by  the  law  plus  Jesus 
while  Gentiles  were  to  be  saved  by  Jesus  plus  the  law. 
The  work  of  Barnabas  and  Paul  on  their  first  missionary 
journey  had  raised  the  question  in  an  acute  form.  They 
had  baptized  Gentiles  and  received  them  into  Christian 
fellowship  without  requiring  circumcision  or  the  observance 
of  any  other  part  of  the  Jewish  law.  This  proceeding  was 
unsatisfactory  to  many  of  the  Jewish  Christians.  Some  of 
them  came  down  to  Antioch  and  insisted  that  the  mission- 
aries had  preached  a  defective  gospel,  "  saying,  Except  ye 
be  circumcised  after  the  custom  of  Moses,  ye  cannot  be 
saved,"  After  much  futile  discussion  at  Antioch  it  was 
decided  to  carry  the  question  to  Jerusalem.  Paul  and 
Barnabas  with  others  were  sent  down  to  consider  the  mat- 
ter with  the  Apostles  and  brethren.  After  mature  delibera- 
tion it  was  decided  that  the  Jewish  system  was  not  to  be 
imposed  upon  the  Gentiles,  that  salvation  was  by  faith  alone. 
Neither  circumcision  nor  the  distinction  in  foods  nor  the 
sacred  seasons  (Sabbath,  new  moon,  annual  festivals)  nor 
the  sacrifices  were  incumbent  on  the  Gentile  Christians. 
This  conclusion  was  fully  approved  by  James  and  the  other 
leaders  at  Jerusalem,  but  did  not  command  the  assent  of  all 
Jewish  Christians;  much  of  Paul's  later  life  was  spent  in 
the  struggle  with  these  "  Judaizers."  The  effort  to  "  Juda- 
ize  "  Christianity  failed  in  this  form,  but  the  same  tendency 
to  add  to  grace  some  kind  of  works  as  necessary  to  salva- 
tion continued  and  ultimately  produced  the  Catholic  church 


20  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

in  the  course  of  the  following  centuries.  Paul  with  his 
great  doctrine  of  justification  by  faith  actually  went  down 
in  defeat  in  the  Christian  body  as  a  whole,  and  to  this  day 
a  comparatively  small  minority  of  the  nominal  Christians 
of  the  world  are  faithful  to  the  gospel  of  the  grace  of  God 
as  he  set  it  forth  in  his  letters  to  the  Galatians  and  Romans. 

There  were  other  serious  doctrinal  dangers  among  the 
churches  of  the  first  century.  The  divinity  of  Christ,  the 
humanity  of  Christ,  the  resurrection  of  the  body,  were  de- 
nied; apparently  the  worship  of  angels  had  begun  and  vari- 
ous philosophical  and  theosophical  speculations  were  detract- 
ing from  the  dignity  and  glory  of  Christ.  Theology  as  well 
as  church  order  was  in  its  formative  period,  the  new 
Christian  ferment  was  working.     These  heretics  were  few. 

But  there  was  a  well  defined  body  of  truths  which  were 
held  and  propagated  by  the  great  mass  of  Christians. 
Some  of  these  were  the  unity,  holiness  and  love  of  God 
the  Father,  the  creator,  sustainer  and  ruler  of  all  things ; 
Jesus  Christ  as  his  only  begotten  son,  the  only  Savior  and 
Lord  of  men,  who  suffered,  died  and  rose  again,  and  as- 
cended on  high  whence  he  will  come  again  to  judge  the  liv- 
ing and  the  dead  at  the  last  day ;  the  immortality  of  the 
soul,  the  eternal  sufferings  of  the  wicked  and  the  everlasting 
bliss  of  the  righteous.  These  were  not  yet  wrought  into  a 
system  but  they  were  the  great  facts  out  of  which  later 
systems  of  theology  were  built. 

§13 

CHRISTIAN    LIFE 

The  Christians  (usually  called  disciples  and  brothers), 
came  chiefly  from  the  plain  working  people  who  were  the 
more  accessible  element  of  society.  There  were,  however, 
some  from  the  higher  social  and  political  classes.  In  Cy- 
prus a  governor  had  been  converted,  in  Rome  members  of 
"  Caesar's   household "   were   Christians,   at   various   places 


THE   PLANTING   OF   CHRISTIANITY  21 

men  and  women  *'  of  honorable  estate  "  had  given  in  their 
adhesion  to  the  gospel.  "  Not  many  rich,  not  many  mighty, 
but  some,"  would  describe  the  social  standing  of  the  Christ- 
ians of  the  first  century. 

Racially  they  were  chiefly  Jews  and  Greeks,  but  many 
other  nationalities  were  represented.  Greek  was  the  preval- 
ent language  of  worship  and  Christian  correspondence,  but 
Aramaic,  Syriac  and  some  other  dialects  were  also  used. 

Christian  life  was  by  no  means  ideal.  Coming  from  the 
less  cultured  classes  of  heathen  society,  as  the  great  majority 
did,  it  was  not  to  be  expected  perhaps  that  Christians  would 
escape  entirely  and  at  once  from  the  pollutions  of  their 
earlier  heathen  life.  The  churches  were  afflicted  with  fac- 
tion, strife,  schism,  racial  antagonisms,  drunkenness,  un- 
chastity,  pride,  vanity ;  on  the  other  hand  they  manifested 
many  beautiful  traits  of  character  such  as  charity,  love  and 
service,  in  sharp  contrast  with  the  heathen  about  them. 
Gross  sins  were  punished  by  exclusion  from  Christian  com- 
munion and  ostracism  from  Christian  society.  Heroic  ef- 
forts were  made  to  maintain  honesty  and  chastity. 

In  the  midst  of  persecution  the  Christians  showed  a  calm 
and  confident  fortitude  that  made  them  unconquerable. 
Some  fell  away  and  caused  the  churches  much  sorrow  and 
trouble,  but  many  suffered  fines,  imprisonment,  banishment 
and  mutilation  while  not  a  few  perished  at  the  stake. 

There  was  nothing  like  monasticism  in  this  early  Chris- 
tianity nor  even  asceticism.  They  abstained  largely  from 
eating  meats  offered  to  idols  and  from  all  employments  and 
amusements  that  gave  any  sanction  to  idolatry.  They 
avoided  as  far  as  possible  the  entanglements  of  public 
office,  both  military  and  civil.  They  were  a  quiet,  peace- 
able folk,  zealous  to  do  good  works  and  live  a  quiet  and 
peaceable  life. 


SECOND  PERIOD— loo  TO  323  A.D. 

CONVERSION  OF  THE  EMPIRE  AND  RISE 
OF  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH 

§14 

CONDITIONS   FOR   WORK 

Conditions  in  this  period  were  not  unfavorable  for  the 
advancement  of  Christianity.  It  was  still  confined  to  the 
bounds  of  the  empire,  scarcely  going  outside  at  any  point. 
Life  in  the  empire  was  fairly  safe  and  stable.  Rome's 
chief  enemies  on  her  borders  were  the  barbarous  German 
tribes  on  her  northern  frontier  and  the  Parthians  and  the 
newly  established  Persian  empire  on  the  east.  Her  wealth 
and  ordered  life  were  a  constant  attraction  to  these  maraud- 
ers, but  by  hard  fighting  she  was  able  to  hold  them  at  bay. 
At  points  she  materially  extended  her  territory.  She  was 
able  to  incorporate  a  considerable  area  on  the  north  side 
of  the  lower  Danube.  This  region,  then  called  Dacia  but 
now  known  as  Roumania,  still  shows  in  its  language  the 
efifects  of  this  Latin  occupation,  the  Roumanian  language 
being  a  modification  of  the  Latin.  The  emperor  who  suc- 
ceeded in  this  task  was  Trajan  who  celebrated  his  great 
victory  by  a  column  which  is  still  standing  in  Rome.  He 
also  was  victorious  in  a  war  with  the  Parthians  and  for  a 
time  Armenia,  Mesopotamia  and  Assyria  were  incorporated 
into  the  empire. 

During  most  of  the  third  century  the  empire  was  afflicted 
with  serious  internal  disorders.  The  emperors  were  made 
and  murdered  by  the  various  divisions  of  the  army  almost 
at  will.     Taking  advantage  of  this  internal  weakness  the 

23 


CONVERSION   OF   THE   EMPIRE  23 

various  German  tribes  pressed  into  the  empire  again,  invad- 
ing and  wasting  such  provinces  as  Gaul,  Spain,  Northern 
Italy,  the  Balkan  region  and  Asia  Minor.  About  270  a.  d. 
the  empire  appeared  to  be  on  the  eve  of  dissolution.  For- 
tunately some  very  able  men  appeared  as  emperors  and 
succeeded  in  expelling  these  foreign  enemies  and  restoring 
internal  order.  The  most  important  of  these  were  Aurelian, 
the  "  Restorer  of  the  Empire,"  Diocletian  who  transformed 
it  into  an  absolute  monarchy,  and  Constantine  the  Great. 

The  earlier  part  of  this  period  was  one  of  material  pros- 
perity. Trajan  and  Hadrian  were  great  builders  and  some 
of  the  most  magnificent  remains  of  Roman  architecture  still 
extant  date  from  their  reigns.  Roman  citizenship  was 
granted  to  all  free  men  in  the  provinces  in  212  and  the 
capital  was  moved  from  Rome  by  Diocletian  never  to  return. 
Increasing  poverty  and  a  decreasing  birth  rate  told  the 
story  of  decay  which  in  the  next  period  would  bring  down 
the  empire  in  ruins. 


§15 

EDUCATIONAL   AND   RELIGIOUS   CONDITIONS 

During  most  of  this  period  education  was  more  generally 
diflfused  than  ever  before.  The  provinces  were  largely 
Latinized  and  Roman  education  was  extended  to  them, 
largely  supported  by  the  state.  North  Africa  and  Spain 
were  producing  much  of  the  Latin  literature  of  the  time. 

The  old  disposition  to  skepticism  was  passing  away,  the 
grosser  elements  of  idolatry  were  being  eliminated  and  em- 
peror worship  was  made  obligatory,  becoming  a  sort  of 
test  of  political  loyalty.  The  old  religion  of  the  Romans 
was  being  supplanted  by  warmer  cults  from  the  East,  such 
as  the  worship  of  Mithra,  a  god  of  Persian  origin  particu- 
larly popular  with  the  soldiers,  Cybele  the  Great  Mother 
from  Phrygia,  and  Isis  from  Egypt.  A  wide  spread  dis- 
position to  mix  all  the  religions  was  manifest.     The  age 


24  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

was  growing  more  religious,  more  superstitious,  and  seemed 
to  be  ready  to  accept  any  religion  that  might  come. 

§i6 

CHRISTIAN    MISSIONS 

As  would  be  expected  under  these  conditions  Christianity 
made  great  progress  in  this  period.  There  were  no  boards 
to  support  the  missionaries,  no  schools  adequate  to  Christian 
needs,  no  Christian  governments  to  protect  and  foster  Chris- 
tianity, no  wealth  or  social  influence  to  weigh  in  its  favor. 
And  yet  by  the  end  of  the  period  perhaps  as  much  as  one- 
tenth  of  the  population  of  the  empire  was  Christian.  At 
places,  as  in  Asia  Minor,  half  of  the  people  were  Christian 
and  Christians  were  found  in  all  parts  of  the  wide  spread 
territory.  Very  little  of  the  details  of  the  work  is  known. 
The  very  names  of  most  of  the  missionaries  have  perished. 
In  the  earlier  part  of  the  period  the  work  was  done  by  the 
Greeks  using  the  Greek  language,  but  before  the  end  of  the 
period  the  gospel  was  being  preached  in  several  other 
tongues  and  the  Scriptures  had  been  translated  into  Latin 
for  the  Romans,  into  Syriac  for  the  people  of  Syria  and 
Mesopotamia  and  into  Coptic  for  the  native  populations  of 
Egypt.  The  Latin  proved  to  be  one  of  the  most  important 
versions  in  all  the  annals  of  Bible  translation  since  it  be- 
came for  centuries  the  only  Bible  of  western  Christendom 
and  is  still  the  only  authentic  Roman  Catholic  Bible. 

As  in  the  preceding  period  the  great  majority  of  the 
Christians  belonged  to  the  masses,  but  it  was  reaching  up 
more  and  more  to  include  the  wealthy,  cultured  and  promi- 
nent. About  200  A.  D.  Abgar,  king  of  Edessa,  became  a 
Christian,  the  first  crowned  head  to  bow  at  the  feet  of 
Jesus  of  Nazareth.  The  Armenians  claim  him  as  one  of 
their  kings,  the  first  Christian  king.  In  311  the  great  Con- 
stantine,  one  of  the  contestants  for  the  imperial  crown, 
declared  that  he  had  seen  a  flaming  cross  in  the  skies  having 


CONVERSION   OF   THE   EMPIRE  2$ 

beneath  it  the  words  "  With  this  Conquer."  He  now  ac- 
cepted Christianity  in  principle,  threw  himself  on  the  Chris- 
tians for  support  in  his  struggle  for  the  crown,  and  was 
completely  successful.  In  313  he  gave  the  Christians  com- 
plete liberty  of  conscience  and  thenceforward  to  his  death 
used  his  great  personal  and  official  influence  to  further  the 
interests  of  Christianity  in  both  public  and  private  life. 
Finally  just  before  his  death  in  337  he  himself  accepted 
baptism. 

§17 

OPPOSITION   TO   CHRISTIANITY 

As  in  the  preceding  period  there  was  determined  opposi- 
tion to  Christianity  in  this.  It  endangered  too  many  vested 
interests,  violated  too  many  religious  convictions  and  trans- 
gressed too  many  social  and  political  conventions  to  succeed 
unopposed.  The  masses  of  the  people  saw  their  own  re- 
ligious convictions  and  practices  going  down  before  its 
resistless  advance;  the  government  saw  that  it  was  disin- 
tegrating and  recasting  society  and  no  one  could  foresee  the 
outcome;  its  powerful  semi-secret  organization  could  easily 
endanger  the  supremacy  of  the  state ;  the  purveyors  of 
amusements,  the  idol  makers,  the  priests,  the  temple  keepers 
all  saw  their  callings  threatened.  These  and  other  motives 
led  to  almost  continuous  persecution  in  one  or  another  part 
of  the  empire  during  the  whole  of  the  period.  No  statistics 
are  available,  but  beyond  a  doubt  thousands  of  Christians 
perished  by  horrible  deaths.  For  the  most  part  persecu- 
tion was  sporadic,  that  is  it  was  not  general  but  occurred 
at  one  place  and  then  another.  But  twice  the  empire  put 
forth  all  its  utmost  resources  for  the  suppression  of  Chris- 
tianity root  and  branch.  From  250  to  260  and  again  from 
303  to  311  all  the  machinery  of  the  imperial  government  was 
enlisted  in  the  effort  to  eradicate  it  from  the  earth.  The 
suffering  was  terrible.     Christians  were  fined,  imprisoned, 


26  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

banished,  forced  to  work  in  the  mines,  executed  by  burning 
or  being  thrown  to  the  Hons.  The  churches  were  laid  in 
ruins,  the  buildings  destroyed  or  confiscated,  the  Bible 
burned. 

In  addition  to  this  violent  opposition  many  literary  op- 
ponents rose  in  this  period.  Both  Jews  and  heathen  at- 
tacked Christianity  in  oral  discussions  and  written  works. 
They  argued  against  the  Christian  conception  of  God  and 
the  world,  the  Christian  view  of  the  person  and  work  of 
Jesus  Christ,  the  Christian  ideal  of  life  and  religion.  They 
raised  practically  every  objection  to  Christianity  that  ever 
has  been  raised  or  is  likely  to  be  raised,  but  as  far  as  we 
can  see  did  not  succeed  in  retarding  its  progress  in  the 
least.  In  fact  most  of  their  work  has  perished  except  as 
it  was  quoted  by  some  Christian  writer  in  an  effort  to  refute 
it.  The  most  notable  of  these  opponents  was  Celsus  who 
studied  Christianity  and  wrote  a  book  about  177  which  he 
entitled  "  The  True  Discourse."  It  was  so  powerful  that 
Origen,  the  ablest  Christian  scholar  of  the  time,  felt  con- 
strained to  answer  it  seventy-five  years  after  its  publica- 
tion. And  yet  so  slight  was  the  permanent  efifects  of  this 
book  that  it  has  perished  absolutely  except  those  portions 
that  Origen  quoted.  Had  Origen  not  written  we  should 
not  know  a  single  line  of  the  book. 

The  only  response  which  the  Christians  made  to  this 
opposition  and  persecution  was  heroic  suffering  and  earnest 
oral  and  written  argument.  There  is  no  evidence  of  any 
attempt  at  violent  resistance  during  all  these  long  years 
of  terrible  suffering.  Both  Greek  and  Latin  Christians 
wrote  defenses  of  themselves  and  their  views  which  were 
usually  addressed,  in  the  most  respectful  manner,  to  the 
emperor  and  other  civil  authorities.  In  these  "  Apologies," 
as  they  were  termed,  the  writers  denied  all  charges  of  im- 
moral conduct  or  dangerous  designs  on  the  part  of  Chris- 
tians, demanded  that  they  be  tried  on  criminal  charges  be- 
fore the  courts  and  not  condemned  simply  because  they 
were  Christians,  explained  and  defended  their  beliefs  and 


CONVERSION   OF   THE   EMPIRE 


27 


practices  and  exposed  the  absurdities  and  immoralities  of 
the  various  heathen  rehgious  beHefs  and  practices.  Con- 
stantme  put  an  end  to  persecution,  as  we  have  seen,  in  311. 

§18 

BEGINNINGS   OF   THE   CATHOLIC   CHURCH 

We  have  now  followed  the  rapid  spread  of  Christianity 
over  the  empire  during  the  second  and  third  centuries,  and 
have  seen  it  finally  conquer  the  emperor  and  achieve  its 
freedom.  But  Christianity  itself  had  been  in  process  of 
transformation  as  it  progressed  and  at  the  close  of  the 
period  was  in  many  respects  quite  different  from  the  apos- 
tolic Christianity  of  a.  d.  100.  At  every  step  it  had  been 
changing  and  these  changes  were  making  the  Catholic 
church. 

The  whole  conception  of  the  church  had  been  trans- 
formed. At  the  beginning  of  the  period  the  church  was 
a  local  body  of  saved  people,  democratic  in  government  in- 
dependent of  all  other  churches  and  without  organic  rela- 
tions with  the  state.  At  the  end  the  local  churches  had  been 
amalgamated  into  one  great  body  spread  over  the  empire  and 
called  the  Catholic  or  Universal  church.  This  church  was 
regarded  as  a  saving  institution  outside  of  which  there  was 
no  salvation,  all  the  means  of  grace  having  been  committed 
to  Its  keeping.  Its  unity  was  thought  to  be  in  the  bishops 
who  were  supposed  to  be  successors  of  the  apostles  and  in 
perfect  harmony  with  each  other.  This  universal  church 
was  believed  to  be  infallibly  guided  by  the  Holy  Spirit 
so  that  It  was  kept  from  all  error.  It  was  the  body  of 
Christ,  a  holy  entity,  to  rend  it  was  the  worst  possible  sin 


28  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

§19 
CHURCH   OFFICIALS 

The  general  officers  of  the  first  period  (apostles,  prophets, 
evangelists),  disappear  in  this,  while  the  number  of  local 
officers  is  increased  and  their  character  changed.  The  two 
officers  of  the  apostolic  churches  develop  into  three  for  each 
church  —  one  bishop,  a  plurality  of  elders  or  presbyters,  and 
a  plurality  of  deacons.  Moreover  the  one  bishop  gradually 
extends  his  authority,  through  missions  and  other  methods, 
over  a  large  section  of  country  which  was  known  as  a 
diocese.  Then  the  bishops  of  a  few  of  the  largest  and 
most  important  dioceses  came  to  exercise  a  supervision  over 
the  bishops  of  less  important  ones  and  hence  were  called 
archbishops  or  metropolitans.  A  little  later  five  of  these 
archbishops,  those  of  Alexandria,  Jerusalem,  Antioch,  Con- 
stantinople and  Rome,  increased  their  authority  still  fur- 
ther and  came  to  be  known  as  patriarchs.  The  very  es- 
sence of  the  church  was  thought  to  reside  in  the  bishops, 
who  had  thus  grown  into  officials  of  great  authority. 

The  laity  gradually  lost  their  significance  and  the  whole 
management  of  the  church's  work  and  worship  passed  into 
the  hands  of  the  clergy.  The  property  and  finances  of  the 
church  came  into  the  hands  of  the  bishop,  and  soon  he  be- 
gan to  select  the  lower  clergy  allowing  to  the  people  only 
an  advisory  power.  Thus  power  passed  from  laity  to 
clergy  and  from  the  clergy  as  a  whole  to  the  bishop. 

Moreover  the  presbyters  and  bishops  came  to  be  regarded 
as  priests,  that  is  they  became  mediators  between  God  and 
man,  ministering  grace  through  the  ceremonies  of  the 
church.  Without  them  there  was  no  access  to  God  and  no 
certainty  of  the  forgiveness  of  sin.  This  was  one  of  the 
most  fateful  changes  that  ever  came  over  any  part  of 
Christian  thought,  closing  the  door  of  heaven  against  men 
except  as  the  priest  should  open  it,  shutting  out  God  from 
any  direct  access  to  his  creatures  and  confining  the  blessing 


CONVERSION   OF   THE   EMPIRE  29 

of  his  grace  to  the  ministrations  of  frail  men.  The  divine 
power  of  the  priesthood  was  supposed  to  be  conferred  by 
the  laying  on  of  the  hands  of  the  bishop  in  ordination.  This 
view  of  the  ministry  first  appears  in  Tertullian  about  200. 
Many  lower  officers  were  developed  such  as  subdeacons, 
readers,  acolytes,  etc.,  as  the  churches  increased  in  size, 
thus  multiplying  the  officers  and  further  burdening  the 
church  with  officialism. 

§20 

THE   ORDINANCES   BECOME   SACRAMENTS 

Baptism  and  the  supper  were  greatly  changed  in  this 
period,  being  gradually  transformed  into  sacraments  or  oaths 
of  loyalty  to  the  church,  having  ascribed  to  them  power  to 
work  marvelous  spiritual  changes  in  the  soul.  They  be- 
came vehicles  of  grace  necessary  to  the  forgiveness  of 
sins,  and  the  ceremonies  connected  with  their  administra- 
tion were  multiplied  into  an  elaborate  ritual. 

Baptism  was  still  usually  administered  by  immersion,  but 
where  sufficient  water  for  baptism  was  wanting  and  in 
cases  of  supposed  fatal  illness,  pouring  was  allowed  in  lieu 
of  baptism.  The  latter,  called  clinic  (reclining)  baptism, 
was  regarded  as  defective  and  in  case  the  patient  recovered 
was  completed  by  additional  ceremonies.  Novatian  of 
Rome  about  250  was  the  first  to  be  baptized  in  that  way,  so 
far  as  we  know.  Baptism  was  preceded  by  a  period  of  in- 
struction extending  over  two  or  three  years  in  which  Chris- 
tian doctrines  were  taught  and  Christian  ideals  of  life  in- 
stilled. At  baptism  the  candidate  renounced  the  devil,  his 
pomp  and  his  angels  and  accepted  the  creed  by  repeating  it ; 
after  baptism  white  was  worn  for  several  days  as  a  symbol 
of  purity.  Baptism  was  supposed  to  remove  all  guilt  and 
punishment  due  to  both  original  and  actual  sin  and  to  leave 
the  soul  perfectly  pure,  afflicted  only  with  a  certain  inclina- 
tion to  sin.     It  was  believed  that  salvation  was  ordinarily 


30  THE    COURSE    OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

impossible  apart  from  baptism.  The  belief  in  the  necessity 
of  baptism  appeared  in  the  first  half  of  the  second  century 
and  rapidly  became  general.  Baptism  was  ordinarily  ad- 
ministered by  the  bishop  or  a  presbyter,  but  in  cases  of 
necessity  could  be  administered  by  others. 

Infant  baptism  is  first  seen  in  Tertullian  at  the  end  of 
the  second  century,  but  it  did  not  become  the  general  prac- 
tice until  the  sixth.  Its  rise  was  due  to  the  belief  that  bap- 
tism was  necessary  to  salvation.  Parents  insisted  on  the 
baptism  of  sickly  children,  and  from  this  small  beginning  it 
grew  to  be  the  general  practice  of  the  Catholic  church,  en- 
forced by  both  church  and  state. 

The  Supper  could  be  celebrated  only  by  the  bishop  or 
priest.  It  consisted  of  bread,  and  wine  (mingled  with 
water),  taken  from  the  offerings  brought  by  the  congrega- 
tion and  consecrated  by  prayer.  None  but  the  baptized 
participated  in  the  ceremonies  or  eating.  The  meal  (love 
feast),  which  had  accompanied  the  Supper  in  the  earlier 
period,  gradually  disappears  in  this,  doubtless  owing  to 
abuses  connected  with  it.  From  the  beginning  the  Supper 
had  been  looked  upon  as  one  of  the  most  sacred  parts  of 
worship.  This  feeling  grew  rapidly  during  this  period. 
Early  in  the  period  the  bread  and  the  wine  were  called  the 
body  and  blood  of  Christ,  and  before  its  close  some  writers 
seem  to  think  that  Christ  was  in  some  sense  actually  pres- 
ent in  these  elements.  Before  200  it  was  called  an  offering 
or  sacrifice,  important  for  the  nourishing  and  support  of  the 
spiritual  life,  though  the  full  Catholic  doctrine  had  not  yet 
developed. 


S  21 

DEVELOPMENTS    IN    WORSHIP 

Worship  steadily  grows  more  liturgical,  complex  and 
ornate  throughout  the  period.  This  tendency  was  doubtless 
due  to  the  taste  of  the  people,  the  comparative  ignorance 


CONVERSION   OF   THE   EMPIRE 


31 


and  incompetence  of  the  lower  clergy  and  the  growing 
feeling  that  the  very  words  of  the  service  were  sacred. 
Christian  worship  was  transferred  entirely  from  the  Jew- 
ish Sabbath  to  the  ''  Lord's  day."  On  account  of  persecu- 
tion it  was  often  if  not  usually  before  day  and  after  night- 
fall. The  service  was  full  of  joy  and  thanksgiving,  in 
sharp  contrast  to  the  services  and  religious  atmosphere  of 
the  Jewish  Sabbath.  Certain  annual  seasons  were  also  kept 
as  religious  festivals  in  this  period,  such  as  the  Passover, 
Pentecost,  Epiphany  and  possibly  others.  The  first  two 
were  continuations  of  Jewish  festivals  but  with  Christian 
meaning.  The  Passover  was  the  festival  of  the  resurrection 
and  Pentecost  that  of  the  descent  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  Paul 
and  the  other  apostles  continued  to  observe  the  Jewish  fes- 
tivals after  they  became  Christians,  and  it  is  probable  that 
the  whole  Christian  body  continued  them  without  interrup- 
tion, though  it  was  formally  decided  at  the  Jerusalem  con- 
ference that  they  were  not  to  be  imposed  on  Christians  as  in 
any  sense  necessary  to  salvation. 

In  the  earlier  part  of  the  period  the  Christians  continued 
to  worship  in  private  houses  and  in  such  other  safe  places 
as  they  could  find;  but  in  the  freedom  which  they  enjoyed 
toward  the  close  of  the  period  they  began  to  erect  separate 
buildings  designed  especially  for  Christian  worship  and 
work.  These  they  called  "  churches,"  "  houses  of  God," 
''  houses  of  prayer,"  etc.  None  of  these  earliest  buildings 
have  survived  to  the  present,  but  they  are  known  to  have 
been  parallelograms  with  vestibule  in  front  and  a  raised 
platform  at  the  rear  for  the  seats  of  the  clergy  who  were 
already  beginning  to  raise  themselves  above  the  people. 

Worship  consisted  of  singing.  Scripture  reading,  prayers 
and  informal  preaching.  The  instruction  was  given  in 
classes  and  men  were  won  to  Christ  in  private  so  that 
preaching  was  much  less  important  than  at  a  later  time. 
However  toward  the  end  of  the  period  preaching  was,  un- 
der the  influence  of  the  Greek  and  Latin  orators,  becoming 
more  elaborate  and  formal.     The  bishops  were  the  preach- 


S2  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

ers  and  some  of  them  were  beginning  to  show  considerable 
ability  as  pulpit  orators. 

The  Supper  was  at  first  a  part  of  the  general  worship,  but 
as  the  feeling  of  its  sacredness  grew  the  unbaptized  part 
of  the  congregation  was  dismissed  before  its  celebration. 
The  Latin  term  missa  with  which  they  were  dismissed  then 
gradually  came  to  be  the  designation  of  the  following  com- 
munion service.  As  a  result  of  this  practice  the  communion 
service  of  the  Catholic  church,  or  at  least  that  part  of  it 
in  which  the  elements  are  consecrated,  is  called  the  missa 
or  in  English  mass. 

§22 
CHRISTIAN    LIFE   AND  DISCIPLINE 

Candidates  were  prepared  for  baptism  by  a  long  period 
of  instruction  as  we  saw  above.  Repentance  and  faith  were 
presupposed.  All  that  care  could  suggest  was  done  to  pre- 
serve the  purity  of  the  church  members,  and  yet  there  can 
be  no  doubt  that  the  tone  of  Christian  life  was  declining. 
In  fact  society  in  general  was  decaying  and  Christianity  but 
felt  the  general  world-wide  tendency. 

Discipline  for  moral  lapses  in  the  church  was  certain 
and  severe.  For  very  heinous  sins  such  as  apostasy,  excom- 
munication was  the  penalty  and  as  much  as  twenty  years  of 
penance  was  imposed  before  readmission  to  the  communion. 
Excommunication  involved  ostracism  from  Christian  so- 
ciety. Christians  sought  to  mitigate  the  divorce  evil,  to 
abolish  the  practice  of  exposing  children,  to  elevate  the 
character  of  the  marriage  relation  and  home  life,  to  al- 
leviate the  conditions  of  slavery,  and  in  these  respects  they 
made  an  appreciable  impression. 

Some  earnest  souls  despairing  of  saving  society  and  rest- 
ive under  the  increasing  and  oppressive  ecclesiasticism  of 
the  church  began  to  live  the  ascetic  life.  At  first  they  only 
renounced  marriage  and  property  and  the  eating  of  flesh 


CONVERSION   OF  THE  EMPIRE  33 

and  the  drinking  of  wine,  and  continued  their  place  in  so- 
ciety. Later  they  began  to  leave  the  world  and  withdraw 
into  the  desert  and  other  places  of  retirement.  The  first  man 
of  note  to  adopt  this  anchorite  life  was  Anthony  of  Thebes 
in  Egypt  who  withdrew  into  the  desert  where  he  lived  for 
many  years.  From  his  place  of  retirement  he  exerted  an 
immense  influence  on  the  Christian  life  of  Egypt.  Later 
his  biography  was  written,  possibly  by  the  great  theologian 
Athanasius,  and  became  one  of  the  most  popular  books  of 
devotion  of  that  period.  Great  numbers  of  likeminded  men 
gradually  gathered  round  him  and  in  order  to  bring  some 
order  out  of  the  chaos  Pachomius  drew  up  a  rule  about  322 
which  was  the  first  of  the  long  list  of  monastic  rules.  It 
was  the  beginning  of  the  ordered  monasticism  which  has 
played  so  large  a  part  in  the  history  of  Christianity. 

Marriage  began  to  be  discredited  in  this  period.  The 
clergy  were  still  married  but  second  marriages  were  for- 
bidden to  them  and  there  was  a  distinct  tendency  to  regard 
the  unmarried  life  as  moving  on  a  higher  plane  than  the 
married. 

Christians  rather  shunned  public  life  because  it  frequently 
involved  the  recognition  of  idolatry,  put  them  into  danger 
both  in  the  army  and  civil  positions,  and  often  led  to  the 
taking  of  human  life.  Most  of  the  early  Christians  op- 
posed capital  punishment.  They  withdrew  from  the  pol- 
lutions of  heathen  society,  from  degrading  amusements  such 
as  the  circus  and  the  theater. 

Christians  buried  their  dead  rather  than  cremated  them  as 
the  Romans  did.  On  account  of  persecution  and  the  high 
cost  of  ground  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  great  cities  like 
Rome  they  buried  in  extensive  underground  galleries  often 
miles  in  length  and  containing  tens  of  thousands  of  bodies. 
These  galleries  are  known  as  catacombs  and  when  first  dis- 
covered in  modern  times  contained  many  most  interesting 
and  important  memorials  of  the  life  and  faith  of  the  early 
Christians.  The  earliest  Christian  art  is  found  here  in  the 
form  of  symbolic  pictures  and  figures  such  as  the  dove,  the 


34  THE    COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

anchor,  the  lamb,  the  palm  branch,  crown,  harp  and  fish. 
The  last,  a  sort  of  Christian  cryptogram,  served  as  a  pass- 
word among  Christians  by  which  they  could  recognize  each 
other  in  times  of  danger.  The  letters  of  the  Greek  word  for 
fish  are  the  initial  letters  of  the  words  "'  Jesus  Christ  God's 
Son  Savior."  The  fish  therefore  served  as  a  means  of 
recognition  and  a  confession  of  Christian  faith. 

Most  of  the  Christians  continued  to  be  uneducated.  They 
established  no  schools  of  their  own  except  a  few  catechetical 
schools  for  the  training  of  Christian  workers,  and  they 
patronized  the  heathen  schools  very  little.  This  was  un- 
doubtedly one  of  their  greatest  mistakes. 

§23 

THE  DEVELOPMENT   OF  DOCTRINE 

Some  phases  of  Christian  truth  began  to  be  gathered  into 
what  may  be  called  a  system  in  this  period.  The  most  im- 
portant work  in  this  direction  was  the  collection  and 
canonizing  of  the  books  of  the  New  Testament.  About 
twenty  years  after  the  death  of  Jesus  the  Christians,  some 
apostles  and  others,  began  to  write  brief  pamphlets  for  the 
practical  needs  of  the  churches.  These  were  letters  dealing 
with  the  practical  and  doctrinal  difficulties  of  churches 
and  individuals,  brief  accounts  of  the  life  and  teachings  of 
Jesus,  short  history  of  the  early  labors  of  some  of  the  mis- 
sionaries and  books  called  apocalypses  expressing  the  glow- 
ing hopes  and  expectations  of  the  Christians  for  the  future 
triumph  of  the  kingdom  of  God.  There  was  a  great  mass 
of  this  Christian  literature,  some  of  it  of  the  highest  value 
and  some  of  it  of  comparatively  little  value.  These  writings 
at  first  circulated  separately  among  the  churches  and  were 
read  in  their  public  services  as  each  thought  best.  Under 
the  test  of  practical  service,  and  as  we  believe  guided  by 
the  Holy  Spirit,  the  great  majority  of  the  churches  found 
themselves   in   substantial   agreement   as   to   what   writings 


CONVERSION    OF   THE   EMPIRE  35 

ought  to  be  considered  a  rule  for  the  faith  and  practice 
of  the  churches.  These  they  called  a  Canon  or  rule.  They 
were  then  gathered  together  and  eventually  put  along  with 
the  Old  Testament.     Thus  our  Bible  was  finished. 

The  earliest  creed  was  the  so-called  "  Apostles'  Creed." 
It  was  not  drawn  up  by  the  apostles  as  its  name  might  in- 
dicate, nor  was  it  the  work  of  a  council  as  was  the  case  with 
later  creeds.  It  rather  grew  up  in  the  process  of  missionary 
activities  as  a  brief  comprehensive  statement  of  Christian 
faith  which  candidates  were  required  to  accept  before  bap- 
tism. Traces  of  it  occur  before  200,  but  the  exact  words 
were  not  fixed  until  the  fourth  or  fifth  century.  It  is  a  con- 
fession of  facts  rather  than  of  doctrines  and  is  the  oldest 
and  most  widely  used  statement  of  Christian  faith  in  exist- 
ence. Millions  of  Christians  in  all  parts  of  the  world  still 
repeat  it  every  Sunday  as  the  expression  of  their  faith.  On 
account  of  its  history  and  wide  use  it  is  here  given  in  full: 
"  I  believe  in  God  the  Father  Almighty,  Maker  of  heaven 
and  earth;  and  in  Jesus  Christ  His  only  begotten  Son 
our  Lord ;  who  was  conceived  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  born  of 
the  Virgin  Mary ;  suffered  under  Pontius  Pilate,  was  cruci- 
fied, dead,  and  buried ;  he  descended  into  hell ;  the  third  day 
he  rose  from  the  dead ;  he  ascended  into  heaven ;  and  sitteth 
at  the  right  hand  of  God  the  Father  Almighty;  from  thence 
He  shall  come  to  judge  the  quick  and  the  dead. 

"  I  believe  in  the  Holy  Ghost ;  the  holy  catholic  Church ; 
the  communion  of  saints ;  the  forgiveness  of  sins ;  the  resur- 
rection of  the  body;  and  the  life  everlasting.     Amen." 

There  were  a  few  unitarians  in  this  period  but  the  great 
body  of  Christians  accepted  Jesus  as  the  Messiah  of  the 
Old  Testament,  the  divine  Son  of  God,  the  son  of  man, 
truly  God  and  truly  man,  through  whose  teachings,  suffer- 
ings, death,  resurrection  and  endless  life  we  have  our  re- 
demption. In  this  regard  the  Christians  of  that  day  did  not 
differ  materially  from  the  great  body  of  the  Christians  of 
the  present. 


36  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

§24 
SECTS   AND   HERESIES   OF   THIS   PERIOD 

As  we  saw  in  dealing  with  the  preceding  period  the  Chris- 
tians were  never  entirely  in  agreement  about  all  questions 
of  faith.  These  and  other  differences  led  in  this  period  to 
serious  schisms  in  the  Christian  body,  and  the  formation  of 
several  parties  more  or  less  hostile  to  each  other.  The  great 
body  of  the  Christians  were  called  Catholics  and  they  were 
fairly  harmonious  in  their  beliefs  and  practices;  but  by  no 
means  all  the  Christians  agreed  with  them.  The  great 
stream  of  Christian  history  flowed  along  the  channel  in- 
dicated above,  caught  in  the  process  of  evolution  and  rapid 
change  without  knowing  that  they  were  drifting  away  from 
the  ancient  apostolic  moorings.  They  were  in  the  midst 
of  heathenism  and  absorbing  from  it,  they  were  illiterate 
and  the  Scriptures  were  little  circulated,  they  had  very  few 
trained  leaders,  the  churches  being  compelled  to  use  such 
leaders  as  they  could  find  among  their  own  members,  and 
there  were  very  few  Christian  schools.  Consequently  the 
Christian  propaganda  was  lacking  in  those  elements  which 
were  necessary  to  hold  it  true  to  the  New  Testament.  The 
dominant  characteristic  of  the  period  is  drift. 

The  most  important  of  the  sects  were  the  Montanists, 
Novatians  and  Donatists.  They  were  all  bitterly  hostile  to 
the  Catholic  church,  all  were  efforts  to  realize  the  ideal  of 
a  pure  church  on  earth.  The  Montanists  were  founded 
by  Montanus,  a  presbyter  of  Phrygia,  about  the  middle  of 
the  second  century.  He  protested  against  the  growing  lax- 
ness  of  the  churches  in  the  matter  of  discipline  and  insisted 
on  the  continuation  of  the  prophetic  presence  and  activity 
of  the  Holy  Spirit.  He  was  assisted  by  two  prophetesses 
Priscilla  and  Maximilla.  The  movement  developed  won- 
derful enthusiasm  and  power,  spreading  over  most  of  the 
empire,  dividing  churches  and  founding  new  ones  on  a 
stricter  basis. 


CONVERSION   OF   THE   EMPIRE  37 

Novatianism  was  founded  at  Rome  about  a  century  later 
by  a  presbyter  by  the  name  of  Novatian.  He  was  the  leader 
of  the  party  that  believed  in  strict  discipline  and  when 
Cornelius,  the  leader  of  the  lax  party,  was  elected  bishop, 
Novatian  revolted  and  had  himself  elected  an  opposing 
bishop,  thus  causing  a  schism  in  the  Roman  church.  He 
did  not  differ  materially  from  the  position  of  the  church  in 
doctrine,  but  he  was  a  man  of  great  moral  earnestness  and 
believed  that  those  who  had  lapsed  in  persecution  should 
not  be  so  easily  restored  to  fellowship.  The  schism  spread 
over  the  entire  empire  and  continued  to  the  sixth  century. 

The  third  important  schism  took  place  in  north  Africa 
in  the  midst  of  the  Diocletian  persecution  about  311.  It 
was  led  by  Donatus  and  was  a  protest  against  the  acceptance 
of  the  lapsed  back  into  church  fellowship  as  in  the  case 
of  the  Novatians.  The  Donatists  rebaptized  all  who  came 
to  them  from  other  Christian  bodies,  insisting  that  the 
character  of  the  administrator  must  be  considered  as  one  of 
his  qualifications.  This  sect  was  also  a  protest  of  moral 
earnestness  against  laxness  and  ran  much  the  same  course 
as  the  other  two. 

All  three  of  these  schisms  were  protests  against  the  grow- 
ing laxness  of  the  great  church  and  were  more  nearly  biblical 
than  the  church.  But  we  come  now  to  study  two  that  were 
less  scriptural  and  were  really  serious  heresies,  endangering 
the  very  essence  of  Christianity  itself.  They  were  Gnostic- 
ism and  Manichseism.  They  were  much  alike  and  both 
arose  from  an  effort  to  amalgamate  Christianity  with  cer- 
tain heathen  philosophies  and  religions. 

Gnosticism  arose  in  Asia  Minor  and  Egypt  and  was  an 
effort  to  unite  Christianity  and  the  religious  beliefs  of  these 
regions  into  a  new  religion  composed  of  the  two.  God  was 
believed  to  be  wholly  good  and  incapable  of  any  relations 
with  this  evil  world;  matter  was  regarded  as  eternal  and 
the  abode  of  evil;  God  and  matter  came  into  relations  by 
a  descending  series  of  spiritual  beings  known  as  aeons,  who 
emanated  from  God ;  one  of  the  lowest  of  these  formed  the 


38  THE    COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

universe  as  we  see  it ;  man  is  a  mixture  of  the  good  and  the 
evil  of  the  universe.  Christ  who  was  one  of  the  lower 
aeons  redeems  men  by  knowledge  {gnosis,  hence  gnosticism) 
not  by  faith.  Some  men  are  entirely  material  and  incapable 
of  redemption;  others  can  be  only  partially  redeemed  and 
only  the  gnostics  are  fully  saved.  Christ  had  no  real  body 
and  there  is  no  resurrection  of  the  bodies  of  men.  The  Old 
Testament  and  much  of  the  New  was  rejected.  Thus  it 
will  be  seen  that  they  attacked  nearly  every  important  Chris- 
tian truth.  The  Christian  writers  and  preachers  of  the  sec- 
ond and  third  centuries  laid  themselves  out  to  disprove  and 
overthrow  this  dangerous  heresy  and  after  a  long  and  hard 
struggle  they  succeeded  in  gradually  eliminating  it. 

Manichaeism  was  founded  by  Mani  of  Persia  and  was 
an  attempted  combination  of  Christianity  with  the  Persian 
religions.  It  was  much  like  Gnosticism  which  it  followed 
by  half  a  century.  It  spread  all  over  the  Christian  world, 
organizing  churches  and  continuing  for  several  centuries. 

Thus  at  the  end  of  this  period  we  see  Christianity  al- 
ready being  torn  by  schism  and  heresy.  On  the  one  side 
men  were  trying  to  keep  the  churches  pure  and  as  true  as 
possible  to  the  New  Testament  model,  and  on  the  other  they 
were  trying  to  corrupt  them  by  combining  Christianity  with 
something  else.  We  shall  see  these  efforts  continuing 
through  the  centuries. 

During  this  period  the  production  of  literature  was  gradu- 
ally passing  over  to  the  Christians.  The  heathen  still  wrote, 
but  their  literary  output  was  decreasing  in  quantity  and  de- 
generating in  quality.  On  the  other  hand  the  stream  of 
Christian  Hterature  was  steadily  increasing  in  quantity  and 
improving  in  quality.  It  was  still  chiefly  in  the  Greek  and 
Latin  languages,  and  consisted  of  missionary  tracts,  de- 
fenses of  Christianity  and  the  Christians,  attacks  upon  the 
heathen  systems  and  ideals,  and  polemics  against  various 
heresies  and  schisms.  The  world  was  compelled  to  wait 
many  centuries  for  the  production  of  a  "  polite  literature  " 
which  could  be  called  Christian. 


THIRD  PERIOD  —  323  TO  600  A.D. 

THE  UNDIVIDED  CATHOLIC  CHURCH 

§25 

OUTWARD   CONDITIONS   AFFECTING   CHRISTIAN    WORK 

The  history  of  this  period  is  marked  by  one  of  the  pro- 
foundest  upheavals  that  ever  affected  the  poHtical  and 
social  life  of  Europe,  namely  the  expansion  of  the  Germans 
and  the  fall  of  the  Roman  empire.  We  have  already  had 
glimpses  of  the  Germanic  tribes  in  their  forest  home  on 
the  north  side  of  the  Danube  and  the  east  side  of  the  Rhine. 
For  some  years  it  had  been  difficult  for  Rome  to  hold  them 
behind  these  natural  barriers  and  more  than  one  Roman 
army  had  been  practically  destroyed  by  their  valor.  They 
had  only  reached  the  higher  stages  of  barbarism  in  their 
culture ;  they  had  no  literature,  not  even  a  written  language, 
there  was  little  agriculture  and  no  manufacturing.  But  they 
were  brave  and  ruthless,  and  had  looked  for  centuries  with 
hungry  eyes  across  the  borders  into  the  fair  fields  and 
wonderful  cities  of  the  empire.  The  settled  life  and  ac- 
cumulated riches  of  these  imperial  lands  were  a  constant 
lure. 

As  long  as  the  empire  was  strong  and  possessed  abund- 
ance of  men  it  had  little  to  fear.  But  it  was  now  declin- 
ing. Constant  wars  and  crushing  taxes  were  depopulating 
the  lands  and  impoverishing  the  people.  Germans  were 
allowed  to  move  in  and  settle ;  they  were  obtaining  positions 
in  the  army  and  civil  service,  thus  effecting  a  peaceable 
penetration  of  the  country.  Moreover  they  were  them- 
selves hard  pressed  from  behind  by  other  tribes  more  bar- 
barous than  themselves,  moving  westward  from  Asia. 

39 


40  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

Meantime  the  government  of  the  empire  itself  had  been 
split  into  an  eastern  and  a  western  division.  Constantine 
before  his  death  in  337  had  divided  it  among  his  sons,  and 
it  had  never  been  reunited  except  for  brief  periods.  He 
had  removed  the  capital  to  Byzantium  on  the  Bosphorus 
which  was  renamed  Constantinople,  Constantine's  city. 
The  western  capital  was  removed  to  Ravenna  on  the 
Adriatic  and  the  city  of  Rome  was  left  to  the  rule  of  the 
bishop.  This  western  half  of  the  empire  rapidly  grew 
weaker  and  about  375  the  German  tribes  began  to  break 
into  it  over  the  Rhine  and  the  Danube.  It  was  now  no 
longer  able  to  withstand  them.  They  crushed  its  armies, 
overthrew  its  government,  looted  its  wealth  and  appro- 
priated its  lands.  The  whole  political  and  social  life  from 
the  Adriatic  Sea  westward  was  pulverized  in  a  century, 
the  last  vestige  of  Roman  government  ceasing  in  476  with 
the  overthrow  of  Romulus  Augustulus.  Much  of  the 
fruits  of  centuries  of  Roman  civilization  was  utterly  de- 
stroyed. When  the  storm  was  over  and  the  various  Ger- 
man tribes  had  settled  down  they  began  to  build  up  smaller 
national  governments  on  the  ruins  of  the  old  imperial  gov- 
ernment. The  Franks  took  over  Gaul  and  ultimately  gave 
their  name  to  the  country  of  France.  The  West  Goths  set 
up  an  extensive  kingdom  in  Spain,  the  Vandals  in  north 
Africa  and  the  islands  of  the  western  Mediterranean,  the 
Lombards  in  northern  Italy  and  less  important  tribes  in 
other  sections. 

The  first  effects  of  this  great  invasion  seemed  to  be  dis- 
astrous, but  the  German  masters  soon  began  to  accept  from 
their  conquered  subjects  both  civilization  and  religion.  The 
subjects  conquered  their  masters  in  an  intellectual  and 
spiritual  way,  and  a  process  of  assimilation  soon  began 
which  ultimately  formed  a  new  basis  for  the  life  of  all 
western  Europe. 


THE   UNDIVIDED   CATHOLIC   CHURCH  4I 

MISSIONS 

Amid  the  shock  of  such  mighty  movements  and  trans- 
formations it  could  hardly  be  expected  that  Christian  mis- 
sions would  make  much  progress.  But  as  a  matter  of  fact 
there  was  decided  progress  during  the  two  hundred  and 
seventy-five  years  of  this  period. 

In  the  first  place  the  evangelization  of  the  Roman  empire 
was  completed.  With  the  beginning  of  this  period  govern- 
mental opposition  and  persecution  ceased  and  the  period  of 
governmental  favor  began.  Constantine  and  all  subsequent 
emperors  except  Julian  (361-3)  exerted  their  influence 
actively  in  behalf  of  Christianity.  Property  confiscated 
during  persecution  was  restored,  churches  were  erected  at 
governmental  expense,  laws  were  revised  in  the  interest  of 
Christian  ideals,  the  church  was  rapidly  endowed.  Julian 
was  brought  up  a  Christian  but  apostatized  and  sought 
ineffectually  to  restore  heathenism.  After  his  death  in 
363  all  the  emperors  were  Christians  and  before  the  end  of 
the  fourth  century  Christianity  was  virtually  made  the  es- 
tablished religion  of  the  empire.  The  government  now  be- 
gan to  use  repressive  measures  against  the  old  heathenism 
and  eventually  the  temples  were  destroyed  or  forcibly  trans- 
formed into  Christian  churches,  heathen  worship  was  sup- 
pressed, heathen  priesthoods  dissolved  and  heathen  schools 
were  closed.  The  closing  of  the  great  school  at  Athens  in 
527  may  be  called  the  end  of  heathen  culture  in  the 
empire.  With  governmental  favor  gradually  arose  govern- 
mental control  over  the  church  with  all  its  varied  evils. 

Of  course  under  these  circumstances  conversions  were  not 
thorough  and  by  the  end  of  the  period  the  church  was  at 
places  but  little  better  than  baptized  heathenism.  But  such 
Christianity  as  it  was  the  empire  was  Christian  by  the  year 
600.  The  Greco-Roman  world  had  been  incorporated  into 
the  church. 


42  THE    COURSE    OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

The  second  great  phase  of  mission  work  in  this  period 
was  the  conversion  of  the  German  hordes  that  had  poured 
into  the  western  part  of  the  empire.  A  few  had  been  con- 
verted before  they  entered,  but  the  great  majority  were 
trophies  of  the  Christianity  in  the  midst  of  which  they  set- 
tled. It  was  a  stupendous  piece  of  home  mission  work. 
Here  again  hosts  of  them  became  Christians  tn  masse  under 
the  influence  of  their  princes  or  other  worldly  considerations 
and  were  little  changed  in  character.  But  henceforth  they 
will  look  to  the  church  for  culture  and  religious  light. 
Many  of  them,  like  the  Visigoths,  Vandals  and  others,  were 
first  converted  to  Arianism  and  then  later  to  the  orthodox 
Catholic  church ;  others,  like  the  Franks,  were  converted 
directly  to  orthodox  Christianity.  Clovis,  the  king  of  the 
Franks,  had  a  Catholic  wife.  Doubtless  owing  in  part  to 
her  influence  he  became  a  Catholic  Christian  and  was  bap- 
tized on  Christmas  day,  496.  This  led  to  the  rapid  con- 
version of  all  the  Franks  and  threw  the  whole  of  their 
influence  with  Catholic  Christianity.  As  a  consequence  or- 
thodoxy was  completely  triumphant  throughout  the  territory 
of  the  empire  by  the  end  of  the  period. 

Christianity  also  began  to  spread  beyond  the  borders  of 
the  empire  in  this  period.  In  the  West  Ireland  was  con- 
verted, chiefly  by  the  labors  of  Patrick,  a  Briton  who  had  as 
a  heathen  been  a  slave  in  Ireland.  Escaping  from  his  Irish 
masters  he  fled  to  his  native  land,  where  he  was  converted 
to  Christianity ;  he  then  returned  to  Ireland  and  in  432  be- 
gan work  for  the  conversion  of  his  former  masters.  He 
was  wonderfully  successful  and  before  long  Ireland  could 
justly  be  called  the  "  Isle  of  Saints."  The  type  of  Chris- 
tianity was  much  more  evangelical  than  that  of  Rome,  with 
which  it  had  no  connection  for  several  centuries. 

Irish  Christians  were  filled  with  the  missionary  spirit 
and  in  the  next  century  they  carried  the  gospel  to  the  Scotch, 
who  were  of  the  same  racial  stock.  A  company  of  Irish 
missionaries  led  by  Columban  settled  on  the  Island  of  lona 
in  southwest  Scotland  in  the  year  563,  and  made  it  a  famous 


THE   UNDIVIDED   CATHOLIC   CHURCH  43 

center  of  missionary  effort.  Christianity  had  already  been 
planted  in  Scotland  but  it  had  not  flourished.  Under  the  in- 
spiration of  these  Irish  the  whole  country  was  soon  Chris- 
tianized and  became  a  model  of  holy  living  and  missionary 
zeal,  sending  missionaries  to  the  continent.  It  too  was  much 
more  evangelical  than  the  Romans. 

In  the  East  Christianity  was  firmly  planted  in  Persia, 
Armenia  and  Georgia,  and  in  Abyssinia  in  Africa.  All 
these  churches  suffered  more  or  less  persecution  and  before 
the  end  of  this  period  for  one  reason  or  another  had  split 
off  from  the  Catholic  church.  Christianity  even  reached 
India  and  China  in  this  period  and  started  promising  mis- 
sions, but  the  work  in  these  lands  was  not  permanent. 

Northward  Ulfilas,  a  Visigoth,  had  carried  Christianity 
across  the  Danube  to  his  own  people  about  341,  before  they 
entered  the  empire.  He  reduced  their  language  to  writing 
and  began  a  German  literature  by  translating  parts  of  the 
Bible  into  their  language.  His  work  was  markedly  success- 
ful, but  the  Visigoths  crossed  the  Rhine  soon  after  their 
conversion  and  then  moved  westward,  so  that  this  work  had 
little  effect  on  the  later  evangelization  of  Germany.  This 
brief  survey  will  serve  to  show  that  the  period  was  one  of 
great  activity  and  efficiency  in  missionary  endeavor. 

§27 

THE   CHURCH    AND   ITS   OFFICERS 

This  was  also  a  period  of  further  and  rapid  development 
in  organization.  The  centralizing  tendencies  of  the  pre- 
ceding period  were  accelerated  and  strengthened  in  this. 
The  laity  lose  all  share  in  the  control  of  the  churches, 
and  the  clergy  become  a  close  self-perpetuating  corporation 
in  whose  hands  all  ecclesiastical  authority  rests.  They  were 
freed  from  the  burdens  of  civil  life  and  largely  from  civil 
control.  A  system  of  church  courts  and  church  law,  com- 
posed of  the  decisions  of  councils  and  leading  bishops  and 


44  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

known  as  canon  law,  grew  up  as  a  rival  to  the  courts  and 
laws  of  the  state.  Church  law  was  administered  in  church 
courts,  by  church  lawyers  and  judges.  Ultimately  these 
church  courts  obtained  a  recognized  jurisdiction  over  most 
of  the  affairs  of  clergymen  and  over  laymen  in  such  matters 
as  marriage  and  divorce,  inheritance  of  property,  etc. 
Church  property,  rapidly  increasing  in  quantity,  was  held 
entirely  by  the  clergy. 

As  the  power  of  the  great  bishops  increased  the  state  felt 
compelled  to  interfere  in  their  selection.  As  a  consequence 
the  civil  authorities  began  to  influence  the  elections  and  ulti- 
mately to  make  the  appointments  to  these  important  posi- 
tions. The  church's  increasing  power  thus  led  to  friction 
with  the  civil  authorities  and  ultimately  to  its  enslavement 
to  the  state. 

Among  all  the  churches  of  the  world  that  of  Rome  had 
been  the  most  influential  almost  from  its  foundation.  This 
was  due  to  its  location  in  the  capital  city  of  the  world  as 
well  as  to  its  intrinsic  worth  and  high  character.  As  we  see 
in  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans  it  had  been  active  and  efficient 
from  the  beginning  of  its  history.  Later  it  was  believed  to 
have  been  founded  by  Peter  and  Paul  and,  as  reverence  for 
these  apostles  deepened,  their  supposed  authority,  especially 
that  ascribed  to  Peter,  was  gradually  transferred  to  the 
bishop  of  Rome,  now  widely  regarded  as  Peter's  successor. 
During  the  chaotic  conditions  which  accompanied  the  fall 
of  the  empire  the  church  seemed  to  be  about  the  only  stable 
and  enduring  institution,  and  the  bishop  of  Rome  became 
an  actual  ruler  of  great  power.  Thus  he  gradually  grew 
into  the  pope,  coming  to  exercise  extensive  civil  powers  over 
central  Italy  and  an  ever  widening  ecclesiastical  influence 
over  western  Europe.  He  was  the  only  great  bishop  in  this 
part  of  the  world ;  consequently  his  authority  was  acknowl- 
edged by  others,  while  in  the  East  there  were  several  other 
great  bishops  and  so  his  authority  was  never  acknowledged 
there. 

The  need  of  mutual  counsel  and  advice  amid  the  diffi- 


THE   UNDIVIDED   CATHOLIC   CHURCH  45 

culties  of  Christian  work  led  to  the  organization  of  various 
grades  of  Councils.  There  was  the  local  council  or  synod 
composed  of  the  bishop  and  clergy  of  a  diocese;  then  the 
provincial  council  composed  of  the  clergy  of  a  larger  section 
of  country;  and  finally  the  so-called  Ecumenical  Council 
composed  of  the  bishops  of  the  whole  world.  This  last 
council  was  supposed  to  be  the  church's  mouthpiece  of  in- 
fallibility ;  its  doctrinal  decisions  were  regarded  as  inspired 
and  final ;  they  were  called  dogmas  and  could  not  be  changed. 
It  was  convoked  by  the  emperor  and  its  decisions  were  pub- 
lished as  the  laws  of  the  empire.  Several  of  these  world 
councils  were  held  during  this  period  and  their  doctrinal 
decisions  are  still  regarded  by  the  Catholics  as  final,  and  by 
other  Christians  as  of  the  utmost  importance.  That  of 
Nicea  in  325  defined  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  as  orthodox 
Christians  still  receive  it,  and  that  of  Chalcedon  in  451  stated 
the  doctrine  of  the  person  of  Christ  as  it  is  usually  held. 

§28 

HISTORY    OF   THEOLOGY    IN    THIS    PERIOD 

This  was  a  great  theological  age.  All  classes  of  Chris- 
tians were  deeply  interested  in  theology  and  the  profoundest 
doctrines  were  discussed  and  defined.  The  world  was  torn 
by  continuous  and  bitter  controversies  for  centuries;  some- 
times the  empire  was  shaken  to  its  center  by  theological 
struggles.  Bloodshed  was  not  infrequent,  bishops  were  ban- 
ished by  imperial  authority,  mobs  raided  now  this  side  and 
now  that,  emperors  supported  first  one  side  and  then  the 
other,  in  the  varying  fortunes  of  battle.  Probably  the 
greatest  of  these  controversies  was  that  known  as  the  Arian 
controversy,  in  which  the  divinity  of  Christ  was  involved. 
Arius  had  denied  the  essential  divinity  of  Christ  declaring 
that  he  was  created.  So  popular  were  his  views  at  one  time 
that  Athanasius,  the  great  bishop  of  Alexandria,  was  the 
only  prominent  man  who  was  brave  enough  to  stand  for  the 


46  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

divinity  of  our  Lord.  Hence  the  saying,  "  Athanasius 
against  the  world."  He  was  banished  again  and  again  for 
his  faithfulness  and  all  the  power  of  a  heretical  emperor 
was  exerted  to  crush  the  truth.  But  the  truth  would  not 
down  and  the  first  world  council  decided  that  Jesus  was 
real  God.  Their  decision  was  as  follows :  "  We  believe  in 
one  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  only  begotten  Son  of  God,  be- 
gotten of  the  Father  before  all  worlds,  God  of  God,  Light 
of  Light,  very  God  of  very  God,  begotten,  not  made,  being 
of  one  substance  with  the  Father ;  by  whom  all  things  were 
made;  who,  for  us  men  and  for  our  salvation,  came  down 
from  heaven,  and  was  incarnate  by  the  Holy  Ghost  of  the 
Virgin  Mary,  and  was  made  man,"  etc. 

This  then  was  the  age  when  standards  of  orthodoxy  con- 
cerning God  and  Christ  were  fixed.  In  the  main  the  de- 
cisions of  these  centuries  have  held  to  the  present  time, 
though  criticism  and  denial  of  the  divinity  of  Christ  have 
never  been  entirely  silenced.  This  was  a  marvelous  intel- 
lectual and  spiritual  feat.  Whatever  else  one  may  say  about 
Unitarian  views  of  Christ  one  must  admit  that  those  who 
have  held  these  views  have  borne  few  of  the  burdens  and 
done  little  of  the  work  of  Christian  history.  Unitarianism 
has  had  no  power. 

These  great  controversies  caused  many  serious  schisms 
in  the  Christian  body,  some  of  which  still  remain.  The 
Nestorians  split  off  from  the  Catholic  church  and  fled  to 
Persia  where  they  flourished  for  several  centuries  and  of 
whom  a  feeble  remnant  still  survive. 

The  Armenians  and  several  smaller  bodies  also  split  off 
during  this  period  and  still  remain  apart  from  the  Catholic 
church.  All  these  schismatic  churches  have  suffered  fear- 
ful persecutions  through  the  centuries,  but  they  still  main- 
tain an  independent  existence.  They  differ  considerably 
from  the  Catholics  in  doctrines,  organization  and  worship. 
They  are  neither  Catholic  nor  Protestant. 


THE   UNDIVIDED  CATHOLIC   CHURCH  47 

§29 

THE   church's   ordinances 

During  this  period  the  development  of  the  Catholic  view 
of  baptism  and  the  supper  was  well-nigh  finished.  These 
ordinances  gradually  cease  to  be  beautiful  and  simple  cere- 
monies, setting  forth  in  pictorial  fashion  the  great  facts  of 
redemption  and  the  fundamental  realities  of  Christian  ex- 
perience, and  become  sacraments  with  mysterious  powers 
effecting  in  some  magical  way  the  regeneration  and  sancti- 
fication  of  the  soul. 

Baptism  was  still  administered  almost  exclusively  by  im- 
mersion, often  three-fold,  in  the  name  of  the  Trinity.  But 
infant-baptism  was  becoming  more  and  more  common  in 
lands  where  Christianity  was  well  established.  Baptism 
was  believed  to  wash  away  all  previous  sin,  both  original 
and  actual,  and  to  effect  regeneration.  In  ordinary  circum- 
stances there  was  no  salvation  without  it;  it  was  the  one 
thing  absolutely  essential.  In  view  of  its  tremendous  im- 
portance any  one  was  permitted  to  administer  it  and  often 
it  was  postponed  till  near  death  so  that  the  soul  could  de- 
part this  life  in  the  spotless  purity  of  a  new  baptism. 

The  evolution  in  the  view  of  the  Lord's  supper  was  not 
yet  complete.  It  was  now  firmly  believed  that  Christ  was 
actually  present  in  the  elements,  but  it  had  not  been  deter- 
mined just  how.  Moreover  the  belief  that  there  was  in 
some  sense  a  real  sacrifice  of  Jesus  in  connection  with  the 
ceremony  of  consecration  was  also  rapidly  developing,  but 
was  neither  clear  nor  complete. 

§30 

CHRISTIAN   WORSHIP 

This  was  a  period  of  great  Christian  preaching.  In  the 
earlier  centuries  preaching  was  comparatively  simple  and 
informal,  the  services  being  much  like  our  modern  prayer- 


48  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

meetings.  But  as  the  church  absorbed  the  culture  of  the 
Greek  and  Roman  worlds  the  preaching  tended  to  conform 
to  classic  models  and  rose  in  quality  until  it  equaled  the 
oratory  of  Greece  in  her  palmiest  days.  Thousands  hung 
on  the  lips  of  the  pulpit  orators  in  rapt  attention,  often  ex- 
pressing their  approval  in  wild  applause.  Dr.  Broadus  used 
to  say  that  John  Chrysostom,  John  the  golden-mouthed 
patriarch  of  Constantinople,  was  probably  the  greatest 
preacher  that  Christianity  has  produced.  His  sermons  de- 
serve to  rank  along  side  the  oratory  of  Demosthenes. 

Along  with  great  preaching  the  churches  continued  their 
careful  instruction  of  the  young.  The  course  of  instruction 
preceding  baptism  and  church  membership  usually  continued 
over  three  years  or  more.  All  the  fundamental  principles 
and  duties  of  the  Christian  religion  and  life  were  diligently 
taught,  and  an  earnest  effort  was  made  to  have  a  thoroughly 
intelligent  church  membership.  This  instruction  was  all  the 
more  necessary  because  of  the  absence  of  Christian  schools 
and  general  education.  The  majority  of  the  Christians  con- 
tinued to  be  illiterate  and  whatever  of  instruction  they  re- 
ceived was  given  orally. 

The  few  church  buildings  of  the  preceding  period  were 
destroyed  during  the  terrible  persecutions  with  which  it 
closed.  With  the  peace  and  governmental  favor  that  came 
with  the  conversion  of  Constantine  an  era  of  rapid  church 
building  began.  The  destroyed  property  of  the  Christians 
was  restored  by  imperial  edict.  Constantine  and  his  mother 
Helena  set  a  worthy  example  by  contributing  largely  to  the 
erection  of  noble  church  buildings  at  various  important 
places.  Other  princes  did  likewise  and  by  the  end  of  the 
period  there  were  beautiful  church  buildings  in  many  parts 
of  the  empire.  The  greatest  church  of  the  world  was  St. 
Sophia  in  Constantinople,  built  by  the  emperor  Justinian  in 
the  sixth  century.  It  was  one  of  the  most  splendid  edifices 
in  all  human  history  and  still  stands,  though  it  is  now  a 
Mohammedan  mosque. 

By  the  year  600  the  services  were  not  uniform,  but  in  all 


THE   UNDIVIDED   CATHOLIC   CHURCH  49 

the  great  centers  they  were  much  like  the  CathoHc  services 
at  the  present  time.  The  priests  wore  special  vestments, 
candles  were  burning,  smoking  censers  were  swinging,  there 
was  chanting  and  responsive  singing,  pictures  and  images 
were  freely  used.  Much  of  this  had  been  absorbed  from 
heathenism  and  Judaism.  The  whole  service  was  written 
and  the  very  words  of  it  had  become  sacred.  In  the  East 
it  was  in  the  Greek  language  and  in  the  West  usually  in 
Latin.  Compared  with  the  simplicity  of  the  apostolic  wor- 
ship it  was  all  very  strange  and  complex.  Doubtless  the 
simplicity  and  fervor  of  the  apostolic  churches  remained  in 
outlying  districts,  but  there  had  been  a  wonderful  change  in 
the  great  cities.  Paul  and  the  other  laborers  of  early  days 
would  not  have  recognized  the  churches  of  their  planting. 

The  principal  festivals  of  the  so-called  "  Christian  Year  " 
were  now  complete.  They  gathered  into  three  cycles  around 
the  birth  of  our  Lord,  his  passion  and  resurrection,  and  the 
gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  that  is,  around  Christmas,  Easter 
(then  still  called  passover)  and  Pentecost.  These  festivals 
were  intended  to  bring  annually  and  in  a  striking  way  before 
the  Christians  the  great  facts  of  redemption.  They  consti- 
tuted a  sort  of  "  chronological  confession  of  faith." 

§31 

CHRISTIAN    LIFE 

As  the  churches  absorbed  more  and  more  of  the  unre- 
generated  heathenism  around  them  the  standard  of  Chris- 
tian living  declined.  Morals  were  not  so  pure,  superstition 
increased,  the  Christian  body  was  torn  by  frightful  discord 
and  strife.  Unable  to  keep  these  evils  out  of  the  churches 
the  earnest  Christians  began  to  form  a  special  class  within 
the  church  devoted  to  what  was  believed  to  be  higher 
standards  of  Christian  living.  Ascetic  tendencies  existed, 
as  we  have  seen,  in  the  preceding  period.  These  were  em- 
phasized and  intensified  until  about  the  beginning  of  the 


50  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

present  period  men  began  to  withdraw  from  society  in  great 
numbers  and  live  alone  in  the  solitudes  of  deserts  and  caves. 
They  went  apart  to  fight  out  the  battle  with  sin  in  them- 
selves and  to  escape  from  a  corrupt  world  and  an  oppressive 
church;  they  were  intent  on  the  saving  of  their  own  souls. 
The  thought  of  serving  others  practically  disappeared.  The 
movement  first  appeared  in  Egypt,  where  the  temperament 
of  the  people  and  the  conditions  of  climate  were  favorable. 
Thousands  betook  themselves  to  the  deserts,  where  they 
lived  an  idle  and  useless  life  devoted  to  contemplation  and 
prayer. 

Under  these  conditions  some  organization  became  abso- 
lutely necessary.  The  necessity  for  feeding  and  controlling 
these  hordes  and  giving  them  something  worthy  to  do  cre- 
ated the  strict  rule  under  which  the  monks  have  ever  since 
lived.  As  we  have  seen,  the  first  important  organizer  was 
a  man  named  Pachomius  in  Egypt.  His  form  of  organiza- 
tion was  quickly  carried  to  other  lands,  both  east  and  west, 
becoming  the  basis  for  the  organization  of  Eastern  monasti- 
cism. 

One  further  step  was  taken  in  the  West.  At  Monte 
Cassino  in  southern  Italy  Benedict  of  Nursia  began  the 
creation  of  the  first  order,  the  Benedictine,  in  529,  and  his 
rule  became  the  model  for  all  subsequent  orders.  By  this 
plan  many  separate  monasteries  located  in  different  parts 
of  the  world,  live  under  the  same  rule  and  are  controlled 
and  directed  by  a  common  central  government,  now  usually 
located  at  Rome.  This  was  the  beginning  of  a  tremendous 
movement  which  has  deeply  affected  all  subsequent  Chris- 
tian history.  The  early  monasteries  were  filled  with 
earnest  men,  but  the  life  is  so  artificial  and  unnatural  that 
they  have  frequently  degenerated  into  the  basest  corruption. 
However  much  good  they  may  have  done  during  the  Mid- 
dle Ages,  and  undoubtedly  they  did  much,  still  one  feels 
sure  that  more  could  have  been  done  had  the  inmates  re- 
mained in  society  and  borne  their  share  in  Christian  work. 

The  founding  of  monasteries  for  the  men  was  followed 


THE    UNDIVIDED   CATHOLIC    CHURCH  $1 

by  convents  for  women  and  throughout  the  Middle  Ages 
the  women  vied  with  the  men  in  their  devotion  to  the 
monastic  ideal.  Every  detail  of  life  was  carefully  and 
strictly  regulated,  and  the  service  rendered  within  the  monas- 
tic walls  was  often  large.  The  monks  and  nuns  became 
teachers,  missionaries,  copyists,  musicians,  and  servants  of 
the  people.  While  we  recognize  their  earnestness  and  de- 
votion, we  deplore  the  misguided  zeal  which  has  wrought 
so  much  evil  in  Christian  history.  They  took  the  three- 
fold vow  of  poverty,  chastity  and  obedience,  and  this  vow 
was  irrevocable. 

While  these  changes  were  taking  place  in  the  church  it 
must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  church  was  slowly  but  stead- 
ily elevating  the  general  public  life.  Laws  became  more 
humane,  many  of  the  worst  vices  of  the  ancient  world  were 
either  eliminated  or  ameliorated.  Gladiatorial  games  were 
brought  to  an  end,  bloody  sacrifices  ceased,  crucifying  and 
branding  criminals  were  forbidden,  Sunday  was  made  a 
legal  holiday,  and  many  other  similar  improvements  were 
made.  Evidently  the  church  was  gradually  leavening  the 
world  as  the  world  corrupted  the  church. 


FOURTH  PERIOD  — 600  TO  1050 

BEGINNING  OF  THE  MIDDLE  AGES 

§32 

GENERAL   CONDITIONS 

As  we  turn  into  the  Middle  Ages  we  are  conscious  of 
passing  rapidly  into  a  new  and  strange  atmosphere.  There 
is  an  air  of  decline  and  decay  over  the  whole  world.  Dark- 
ness seems  to  be  settling  down  on  the  face  of  the  earth  and 
for  some  centuries  civilization  and  Christianity  appear  to 
be  about  to  perish,  especially  in  the  West.  This  darkness 
grows  deeper  till  about  900  a.  d.,  when  we  can  begin  to  see 
the  faint  dawning  of  a  better  day.  This  period  is  preem- 
inently the  heart  of  the  ''  Dark  Ages."  The  civilization  of 
the  Roman  world  was  perishing  before  the  Teutonic  world 
had  become  civilized  and  cultured. 

RISE   OF    MOHAMMEDANISM 

Perhaps  the  most  tremendous  event  of  the  period  is  the 
rise  of  a  new  religion  in  Arabia,  the  last  of  the  great  re- 
ligions to  appear.  It  was  founded  by  an  Arabian  camel- 
driver  named  Mohammed.  Its  official  name  is  Islam  and 
its  devotees  are  called  Moslems.  Mohammed  was  born  a 
heathen  at  Mecca  in  571,  but  about  middle  life  came  to  the 
conviction  that  there  is  but  one  God  and  that  he  himself 
was  the  prophet  of  God.  He  was  a  deeply  religious  and 
meditative  man,  but  was  probably  led  to  his  monotheistic 
conviction  by  contact  with  Jews  and  Christians  whom  he 
met  in  his  travels.     He  was  subject  to  epilepsy  and  believed 

52 


BEGINNING  OF  THE  MIDDLE  AGES  53 

himself  to  be  the  organ  of  divine  revelations.  He  began 
to  preach  his  new  doctrines  about  6ii  and  eventually  suc- 
ceeded in  winning  the  support  of  his  wife  and  a  few  rela- 
tives; but  so  bitter  was  the  persecution  directed  against 
him  by  his  neighbors  that  he  fled  to  Medina  in  622  a.  d. 
This  flight  is  called  the  Hegira  and  is  the  year  from  which 
Mohammedans  date  their  era.  Gradually  he  succeeded  in 
winning  enough  adherents  to  return  to  Mecca  in  630  and 
compel  his  former  adversaries  by  force  of  arms  to  accept 
his  claims.  Soon,  through  preaching  and  the  exercise  of 
force,  all  Arabia  was  united  under  the  new  religious  banner. 
By  the  history  of  these  early  years  Islam  was  made  a  po- 
litical as  well  as  a  religious  movement. 
^  Mohammed  died  in  634,  but  he  left  a  religiously  and  po- 
litically united  people,  fanatical,  ruthless,  with  their  eyes 
turned  hungrily  outward  on  the  fair  fields  and  rich  cities 
of  their  neighbors.  All  things  were  ripe  for  a  mighty  re- 
ligious and  racial  movement. 

Moreover,  world  conditions  favored  the  success  of  such 
a  movement.  The  empire  and  Persia  had  been  at  war  with 
each  other  for  several  years  and  both  were  exhausted. 
They  had  neither  armies  nor  money  to  resist  the  onslaught. 
The  result  was  an  easy  victory  for  the  Arabs  or  Saracens 
during  the  first  century  of  their  wonderful  career.  They 
attacked  Palestine  and  Syria  first  and  in  five  years  had 
conquered  the  whole  of  this  region.  Jerusalem  was  taken 
in  638.  Then  turning  westward  they  rapidly  subdued  Egypt 
and  North  Africa  and  by  711  had  reached  the  Atlantic  and 
crossed  into  Spain.  In  a  few  years  they  had  conquered 
most  of  Spain  and  had  penetrated  to  the  heart  of  France. 
Here  they  were  defeated  in  the  great  battle  of  Tours  in 
732  and  turned  back.  This  was  the  high-water  mark  of 
their  conquests  in  the  West. 

In  the  meantime,  in  the  East,  they  had  completely  de- 
stroyed the  government  of  Persia  and  had  advanced  to 
India.  Northward  they  had  penetrated  Asia  Minor  and 
were  hammering  at  the  gates  of  Constantinople.     All  this 


54  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

was  the  work  of  but  one  century  by  a  people  who  had 
hitherto  played  no  part  in  the  world's  affairs. 

All  their  expansion  westward  and  northward  had  been  in 
Christian  territory  and  it  constitutes  the  greatest  setback 
Christianity  has  ever  suffered.  Christians  were  oppressed 
and  persecuted,  their  church  buildings  were  appropriated 
for  mosques,  their  missions  stopped,  their  civilization  well- 
nigh  overthrown  and  destroyed  in  the  lands  that  were  con- 
quered. To  escape  their  sufferings  many  Christians  joined 
the  Mohammedans.  After  a  century  or  so  the  unified  gov- 
ernment of  the  Mohammedans  broke  up  and  their  expan- 
sion ceased;  but  they  have  continued  to  dominate  the  terri- 
tory won  at  that  time  and  have  always  been  intellectually 
and  spiritually  a  blight.  Christianity  has  never  flourished 
under  Mohammedan  rule. 

What  do  the  Mohammedans  believe?  The  principal 
article  in  their  creed  is  monotheism,  belief  that  there  is  but 
one  God.  '*  There  is  no  god  but  God  and  Mohammed  is 
his  prophet."  Mohammed  is  God's  final  prophet,  conclud- 
ing all  revelation  to  men.  Jesus  was  a  man,  born  of  a 
virgin,  divinely  endowed,  ascended  on  high,  whence  he  will 
return  to  judge  the  world  at  the  last  day.  Their  bible  is 
the  Koran,  all  of  it  produced  by  Mohammed ;  their  chief 
religious  duties  are  the  recital  of  their  creed,  reading  the 
Koran,  the  spread  of  their  faith,  the  reciting  of  five  daily 
prayers  with  face  toward  Mecca,  fasting  in  the  month 
Ramadan,  the  giving  of  legal  alms,  a  pilgrimage  to  Mecca. 
Their  only  social  worship  is  on  Friday.  Mohammed  sanc- 
tioned polygamy,  which  is  practiced  in  all  Mohammedan 
countries,  and  looked  forward  to  a  sensual  heaven.  The 
use  of  intoxicating  beverages  and  swine's  flesh  are  entirely 
forbidden,  likewise  the  use  of  images  or  relics  in  worship. 
Predestination  was  so  emphasized  as  to  make  it  practically 
fatalism,  causing  ultimate  social  stagnation  and  being  one 
of  the  greatest  possible  clogs  on  progress.  Mohammedan- 
ism benefitted  the  heathen  up  to  a  certain  point,  and  beyond 
that  became  an  effectual  bar  to  further  progress. 


BEGINNING   OF   THE    MIDDLE  AGES  CC 

§33 

MISSIONS    IN   THE  EAST 

Unlike  the  Germans  who  came  into  the  western  part  of 
the  empire  in  the  preceding  period,  these  Mohammedans 
were  not  converted  by  the  Christians.  On  the  contrary, 
many  of  the  Christians  were  perverted  to  Mohammedanism' 
and  those  who  continued  faithful  were  permanently  de- 
pressed and  shorn  of  their  power.  That  part  of  the  Chris- 
tian world  which  remained  under  Mohammedan  rule  sent 
forth  no  more  missionaries. 

On  the  other  hand  that  part  of  the  empire  which  was 
not  overrun  still  showed  some  missionary  activity.  As  the 
Slavs,  Bulgars  and  other  barbarous  tribes  pressed  into  the 
Balkan  region  from  the  heart  of  Asia  they  were  Christian- 
ized and  to  some  extent  civilized.  In  particular  two  broth- 
ers, Cyril  and  Methodius,  were  notable  missionaries  in  these 
regions.  They  went  out  from  Constantinople  and  evan- 
gelized wide  stretches  of  eastern  Europe.  They  reduced 
the  Slavic  language  to  writing  and  began  a  Christian  litera- 
ture m  that  tongue.  They  worked  about  the  middle  of 
the  ninth  century  and  succeeded  in  Christianizing  the  Mo- 
ravians, Bohemians  and  Bulgars.  In  the  next  century  the 
Servians  received  Christianity  and  a  beginning  was  made 
among  the  Russians,  who  were  rapidly  converted  when 
the  Princess  Olga  was  baptized  in  955  and  Prince  Vladimir 
m  988.  No  people  accepted  Christianity  more  readily  or 
devotedly. 

All  these  tribes  received  the  Eastern  or  (as  we  now  call 
It)  Greek  Catholic  Christianity.  Henceforth,  all  the  mis- 
sions m  this  part  of  the  world  were  of  this  type. 


56  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

§34 
MISSIONS    IN   THE   WEST 

As  we  have  seen,  the  Mohammedans  swept  away  all  the 
Christianity  there  was  in  North  Africa  and  overwhelmed 
but  did  not  destroy  the  Christians  in  Spain.  Most  of  the 
islands  in  the  Mediterranean  also  fell  into  their  hands  and 
the  coasts  of  Italy  were  harried  and  wasted.  In  all  this 
conquered  territory  except  Spain  and  Italy  Christianity 
was  quite  stifled. 

On  the  other  hand  this  is  the  period  in  which  most  of 
the  Germans,  who  had  now  settled  down  in  their  new  homes, 
accepted  Christianity  and  began  to  acquire  culture.  Britain 
had  once  been  largely  Christianized,  but  the  invasion  by  the 
Germans  (Angles,  Saxons,  Jutes,  etc.)  had  destroyed  Chris- 
tianity outside  of  Wales  and  Cornwall.  Missionary  work 
now  began  among  these  Germans  in  England.  In  597  Pope 
Gregory,  who  had  years  before  been  greatly  impressed  by 
the  beauty  of  some  Anglo-Saxon  slaves  in  the  market  at 
Rome  and  had  determined  himself  to  go  as  a  missionary  to 
them,  now  that  he  was  pope,  sent  a  band  of  missionaries  to 
England.  They  were  led  by  a  monk,  Augustine,  who  car- 
ried letters  of  introduction  and  commendation  from  some 
of  the  Prankish  princes  to  Ethelbert,  king  of  Kent,  whose 
wife,  Bertha,  was  a  Prankish  princess  and  a  Christian.  The 
king  was  very  soon  baptized  and  was  followed  by  all  his 
subjects.  There  were  at  this  time  seven  small  kingdoms  in 
England  and  most  of  them  quickly  followed  the  example  of 
Kent,  only  Mercia  and  Sussex  remaining  heathen  as  late 
as  630. 

But  in  the  year  633  Mercia  led  a  heathen  reaction;  the 
Christian  king  of  Northumbria  was  overthrown  and  fled  for 
refuge  to  the  Scotch  missionaries  at  lona.  After  a  while 
he  regained  his  throne  and  then  introduced  the  Scotch  type 
of  Christianity  into  Northumbria  through  the  labors  of  the 


BEGINNING  OF  THE  MIDDLE  AGES  57 

famous  monk,  Aidan.  From  Northumbria  the  Scotch  type 
spread  over  all  north  England  and  it  looked  for  a  time  as 
if  the  country  was  destined  to  have  this  type  rather  than 
the  Roman.  However,  at  the  synod  of  Whitby  in  664  the 
king  of  Northumbria  decided  to  adopt  the  Roman  type 
and  in  the  course  of  the  next  fifty  years  the  whole  of  the 
British  Isles  followed  his  example.  The  Scotch  needed 
only  to  accept  the  Easter  reckoning  and  the  monastic  ton- 
sure of  the  Romans,  and  acknowledge  the  pope.  They 
were  allowed  to  use  their  own  language  in  worship  and 
the  ministers  of  religion  were  permitted  to  marry.  The 
country  was  not  thoroughly  Romanized  until  the  Norman 
conquest  in  the  eleventh  century. 

The  Anglo-Saxons  were  filled  with  the  missionary  spirit 
from  the  beginning  of  their  Christian  history.  Their  kin- 
dred on  the  continent  east  of  the  Rhine  and  north  of  the 
Danube  were  still  raw  heathen,  while  the  Frankish  church 
was  in  a  very  low  state  of  morals  and  life,  and  was  dom- 
inated by  the  government.  The  Scotch  had  sent  a  com- 
pany of  missionaries  to  eastern  France  under  the  leader- 
ship of  Columban  in  590.  They  had  founded  the  famous 
monastery  of  Luxeuil,  and  had  preached  repentance  and  re- 
form throughout  this  part  of  the  country;  but  when  they 
were  driven  away  to  Switzerland  in  610  by  the  hostility  of 
the  Queen  Brunhilda,  whom  they  had  rebuked,  their  work 
fell  into  ruins. 

Christianity  had  been  planted  at  various  points  on  the 
east  side  of  the  Rhine  by  Scottish  and  other  missionaries, 
but  it  did  not  flourish  until  the  Anglo-Saxon  missionaries 
began  their  work.  Winifried  of  York,  on  a  journey  to 
Rome  in  677,  suffered  shipwreck  on  the  coast  of  Friesland 
in  Holland  and  devoted  himself  during  the  winter  to  preach- 
ing to  the  Frisians.  He  returned  to  England  next  spring 
and  induced  one  of  his  disciples,  Willibrod,  to  enter  upon 
the  work.  After  690  this  remarkable  missionary  enjoyed 
the  protection  and  support  of  Pippin,  the  great  Frankish 
statesman,  and  worked  with  noteworthy  success.     He  was 


58  THE   COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

the  first  archbishop  of  Utrecht  and  earned  the  title  of 
"  Apostle  of  the  Frisians." 

Before  his  death  in  739  he  was  joined  by  the  greatest  of 
the  Anglo-Saxon  missionaries  of  this  period,  Boniface  the 
"  Apostle  of  Germany."  Of  a  good  family,  naturally  gifted 
and  well  educated,  he  declined  attractive  positions  in  Eng- 
land and  at  about  forty  years  of  age  devoted  himself  to  the 
German  mission.  Finding  the  conditions  unfavorable  for 
mission  work  at  the  time  in  Friesland  he  went  to  Rome  in 
718  and  secured  the  support  of  the  pope,  at  the  same 
time  promising  to  relate  all  the  work  he  did  to  the  papal 
chair.  Returning  to  Germany  he  labored  ceaselessly  for 
more  than  thirty  years,  reforming  and  reorganizing  the 
Frankish  church,  rendering  a  similar  service  to  the  church 
in  Thuringia  and  Bavaria,  and  himself  carrying  the  gospel 
to  Hesse  and  other  lands  where  it  had  not  as  yet  been 
preached.  He  was  made  bishop  at  large  and  then  arch- 
bishop of  Mainz,  and  gave  ecclesiastical  organization  to  all 
these  lands.  In  752,  when  an  old  man,  he  laid  down  all 
his  ecclesiastical  dignities  and  went  again  to  the  Frisians 
as  a  missionary,  where  he  was  stabbed  to  death  by  the 
heathen  July  5,  754.  He  was  a  notable  missionary,  and  a 
great  ecclesiastical  organizer. 

The  Emperor  Charlemagne,  for  both  political  and  re- 
ligious reasons,  took  great  interest  in  Christian  missions. 
He  forced  the  remnants  of  the  Frisians  and  the  Saxons  to 
accept  Christianity  at  the  point  of  the  sword ;  he  furthered 
the  mission  among  the  Slavs  along  the  eastern  border  of 
his  dominions,  and  in  many  ways  spread  the  Christian 
religion. 

The  beginning  of  mission  work  in  Denmark,  Norway  and 
Sweden  took  place  in  the  ninth  century  and  the  foundations 
were  laid  by  German  missionaries.  The  work  in  Denmark 
was  begun  about  823.  Three  years  later  the  king  was  bap- 
tized, and  there  seemed  to  be  much  promise  of  rapid  con- 
version of  the  whole  country.  A  young  monk  by  the  name 
of  Ansgar,  ''the  apostle  of  Scandinavia,"  was  earnestly  at 


BEGINNING  OF  THE  MIDDLE  AGES  59 

work.  But  about  840  almost  the  whole  Scandinavian  mis- 
sion was  destroyed  by  a  heathen  reaction  and  the  work  had 
to  be  begun  all  over  again. 

In  the  next  century  all  three  of  the  kingdoms  received 
Christianity  from  England,  with  which  they  had  come  into 
intimate  relations  through  their  raids  upon  that  country. 
Christianity  was  accepted  by  the  princes  and  made  the 
state  religion.  Soon  Iceland,  Greenland  and  other  northern 
islands  were  also  Christian.  Thus  was  finished  the  Chris- 
tianizing of  all  western  Europe,  though  it  must  not  be  for- 
gotten that  the  Christianity  which  these  countries  received 
was  in  every  case  Catholicism.  They  knew  nothing  ap- 
proaching pure  Christianity  till  the  Reformation. 

§35 

DIVISION   BETWEEN   EASTERN    AND  WESTERN   CHRISTENDOM 

For  some  centuries  differences  between  the  eastern  and 
the  western  parts  of  the  Christian  world  had  been  develop- 
ing and  leading  steadily  towards  a  schism.  First  among 
the  causes  were  differences  of  race,  language,  and  mental 
and  moral  characteristics.  The  East  was  Greek  in  blood, 
spoke  Greek,  used  Greek  in  worship  and  wrote  its  theology 
in  Greek ;  the  West  was  Latin  and  used  the  Latin  language 
in  the  same  way.  On  account  of  these  differences  of 
language  communication  and  mutual  understanding  were 
difficult,  leaving  the  two  parts  of  the  Christian  world  to 
drift  apart.  Racial  differences  led  to  religious  variations 
that  finally  made  further  communion  impossible.  In  the 
East,  where  the  Greek  language  was  known  and  employed, 
the  church  continued  to  administer  immersion  only  as  bap- 
tism ;  in  the  West,  where  Latin  was  spoken,  other  forms 
were  admitted  in  exceptional  cases  and  finally  as  general 
usage ;  in  the  East  only  the  bishops  were  required  to  ab- 
stain from  marriage,  while  in  the  West  marriage  was  for- 
bidden to  all  the  clergy  ;  in  the  East  leavened  and  in  the  West 


60  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

unleavened  bread  was  used  in  communion;  the  East  held 
that  the  Holy  Spirit  proceeds  from  the  Father  through  the 
Son,  the  West  that  he  proceeds  from  the  Father  and  the  Son ; 
the  Easter  and  Christmas  reckoning  differed  in  the  two 
sections,  and  there  was  much  rivalry  between  the  pope  and 
the  patriarch  of  Constantinople. 

Relations  became  very  strained  in  the  ninth  century  when 
the  pope  went  so  far  as  to  excommunicate  the  patriarch  for 
several  years.  Controversy  broke  out  afresh  in  the  eleventh 
century  and  on  July  i6,  1054,  the  pope  and  the  patriarch 
mutually  excommunicated  each  the  other  and  his  followers, 
condemning  them  to  everlasting  perdition.  This  condemna- 
tion has  never  been  recalled,  though  there  have  been  numer- 
ous attempts  at  reconciliation.  Henceforth,  there  was  an 
Eastern  and  a  Western  Catholic  church,  opposing  each 
other  at  many  points  of  contact. 

§36 

CONTROVERSY    OVER    IMAGE    WORSHIP 

Although  many  of  the  early  Christians  came  from 
heathenism,  where  they  had  been  accustomed  to  the  use  of 
images  in  worship,  these  were  apparently  entirely  discarded 
in  the  early  churches.  But  as  time  passed,  feeling  among 
the  Christians  gradually  changed,  due  no  doubt  to  the  early 
disappearance  of  the  Jewish  element  from  the  churches. 
At  any  rate  we  find  pictures  and  images  of  various  kinds 
in  the  catacombs  from  the  second  and  third  centuries.  They 
were  symbolic  as  we  saw  in  an  earlier  chapter.  Just  how 
soon  they  were  introduced  into  worship  and  into  the 
churches  it  is  now  impossible  to  determine.  It  seems  prob- 
able that  they  were  brought  in  at  first  for  didactic  purposes 
rather  than  as  a  feature  of  worship,  but  we  know  they  were 
welcomed  and  finally  called  forth  the  enthusiastic  veneration 
and  support  of  the  worshipers.  By  the  eighth  century  the 
superstitious  adoration  with  which  they  were  regarded  was 


BEGINNING   OF   THE    MIDDLE   AGES  6l 

almost  as  gross  as  the  idolatry  of  the  heathen  themselves. 
Jews,  Mohammedans  and  a  few  Christians  declared  it  to  be 
idolatry,  charging  that  the  Catholic  church  had  become 
both  polytheistic  and  idolatrous.  Reform  was  urgently 
needed. 

The  attempt  at  reform  was  the  work  of  laymen,  while 
the  monks  and  clergy  and  most  of  the  women  passionately 
supported  the  use  of  images.  The  effort  to  remove  images 
was  led  by  the  emperor  and  the  army.  In  726  the  Emperor 
Leo  III  ordered  the  images  in  the  churches  to  be  elevated 
so  that  the  people  could  not  kiss  and  fondle  them,  as  they 
were  doing.  In  730  he  ordered  them  to  be  taken  out  of  the 
churches  entirely  and  destroyed.  The  church  authorities 
resisted  the  order,  but  it  was  carried  out  forcibly  by  the 
army  and  was  accompanied  by  much  rioting  and  bloodshed. 

Images  were  now  kept  out  of  the  churches  in  the  East 
for  about  fifty  years,  but  in  780  they  were  restored  by  the 
Empress  Irene,  who  was  an  enthusiastic  supporter  of  them. 
In  787  she  called  a  council  (the  last  one  recognized  as 
ecumenical  by  both  the  Eastern  and  Western  churches), 
which  approved  the  use  of  images  in  worship,  but  declared 
that  worship  (latria)  must  be  given  to  God  alone,  while 
service  (douleia)  or  veneration  (veneratio)  could  be  ren- 
dered to  images.  This  theoretical  distinction  between  the 
worship  given  to  God  and  the  veneration  given  to  images  is 
still  maintained  by  both  the  Catholic  churches,  and  it  is  on  the 
basis  of  this  distinction  that  they  deny  that  they  are  idolaters 
or  Mariolaters. 

This  council  did  not,  however,  bring  the  controversy  to 
an  end.  In  813  the  Emperor  Leo  V  took  up  the  fight 
again.  For  a  time  he  was  successful,  but  in  842  another 
woman,  Theodora,  the  imperial  regent,  had  images  re- 
stored to  the  churches.  Since  that  time  they  have  never 
been  disturbed  in  the  Eastern  church,  which  uses,  however, 
only  flat  surfaces,  rejecting  statues  entirely. 

In  the  West  objection  to  images  had  little  support.  The 
pope  steadily  encouraged  their  use,  while  Charlemagne  ap- 


62  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

proved  them  for  their  didactic  value.  The  controversy  led 
the  pope  to  excommunicate  the  Eastern  iconoclasts  in  731. 
The  emperor  responded  by  confiscating  the  papal  estates  in 
the  Eastern  provinces  and  annexing  the  churches  of  south- 
ern Italy,  Sicily  and  Illyria,  all  of  which  were  under  his  po- 
litical control,  to  the  patriarchate  of  Constantinople.  The 
controversy  grew  in  bitterness  until  the  pope  renounced  his 
allegiance  to  the  emperor  and  soon  afterward  allied  himself 
with  the  Franks  in  the  West.  Images  were  not  again  dis- 
turbed in  the  West  until  the  Reformation  in  the  sixteenth 
century.  The  great  controversy  had  only  served  to  fasten 
them  more  firmly  in  Christian  worship. 

§37 

THE   RISE   OF   THE   PAPAL   STATE 

The  beginnings  of  the  Papal  State  are  still  shrouded  in 
obscurity,  but  the  course  of  development  seems  to  have 
been  about  as  follows.  Like  the  bishops  of  other  cities  the 
bishop  of  Rome  early  became  a  land-owner  in  the  name  of 
the  church.  On  account  of  the  wealth  and  influence  of  the 
Roman  church  its  possessions  were  larger  and  more  widely 
distributed  than  those  of  any  other  church.  This  owner- 
ship of  land  gave  to  the  bishop  immense  influence,  and  as 
civil  government  decayed  in  the  West  and  fell  in  ruins  in 
the  Germanic  invasion,  economic  ownership  was  gradually 
transformed  into  a  quasi-political  control.  This  was  es- 
pecially true  of  a  large  district  in  the  immediate  neighbor- 
hood of  Rome,  which  was  known  as  the  Patrimony  of 
Peter  (patrimonium  Petri).  For  two  centuries  the  Lom- 
bards had  held  all  of  central  Italy  except  this  Patrimonium 
Petri,  when  about  the  middle  of  the  eighth  century  they 
began  to  make  encroachments  on  this  territory.  The  pope 
could  do  no  more  than  protest  since  he  was  not  strong 
enough  to  resist  and  had  recently  broken  with  the  Eastern 
emperor,  who  had  long  been  his  protector. 


BEGINNING  OF  THE  MIDDLE  AGES  63 

These  conditions  led  the  pope  to  seek  alliance  with  the 
rising  Prankish  power,  already  the  most  important  govern- 
ment in  the  West.  Accordingly  Boniface,  with  the  sanc- 
tion of  the  pope,  assisted  in  the  overthrow  of  the  Meroving- 
ian line  of  Prankish  kings  and  the  accession  of  the  Car- 
lovingians  by  anointing  Pippin  king  of  the  Pranks  at 
Soissons  in  751.  Three  years  later  the  pope  himself  was 
driven  into  exile  by  the  Lombards.  He  naturally  fled  to 
his  new  allies,  and  in  754  he  crowned  and  anointed  Pippin 
and  his  sons  as  the  lawful  sovereigns  of  the  Pranks.  By 
way  of  recompense  Pippin  the  next  year  invaded  the  Lom- 
bard territories,  destroyed  their  power  and  established  the 
pope's  rule  over  central  Italy.  This  was  the  beginning  of 
the  pope's  position  as  the  recognized  civil  and  political  ruler 
of  central  Italy,  which  was  henceforth  known  as  the  papal 
states.  In  773  Charlemagne  destroyed  the  last  vestige  of 
the  Lombard  kingdom,  confirmed  the  pope's  authority  and 
considerably  enlarged  his  dominions.  Prom  this  time  on 
the  pope  was  not  only  a  religious  leader,  but  also  a  po- 
litical ruler  of  influence  and  the  Papal  State  was  a  reality. 
It  continued  to  cut  the  Italian  peninsula  in  two  until  the 
reunion  of  Italy  under  one  government  in  1870. 

§38 

THE   REVIVAL  OF   THE   EMPIRE   IN   THE   WEST 

As  we  have  seen  the  western  part  of  the  empire  was 
knocked  to  pieces  in  the  fifth  century  by  the  Germans,  who 
set  up  several  independent  governments.  In  the  east  it 
continued,  with  Constantinople  as  its  capital,  and  was  later 
called  the  Byzantine  empire  as  it  became  more  and  more 
Oriental,  but  it  was  politically  a  continuation  of  the  old 
Roman  empire. 

After  a  time  the  Pranks  began  to  unite  the  political  frag- 
ments of  the  West  again  by  extending  their  sway  over 
much  of  the  territory  that  had  once  composed  the  western 


64  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

part  of  the  Roman  empire.  As  their  dominions  extended 
dreams  of  reviving  that  empire  began  to  liaunt  the  Prank- 
ish mind.  These  ambitions  embodied  themselves  in  Charle- 
magne. To  his  title  as  King  of  the  Franks  he  added  King 
of  Italy  in  773  when  he  overthrew  the  Lombards  and 
established  his  own  sway  over  northern  Italy  as  far  south 
as  the  Papal  State.  Pinally  on  Christmas  day  800  while 
he  was  kneeling  in  worship  at  the  grave  of  St.  Peter  in 
Rome  the  pope  suddenly  advanced  and  placed  upon  his 
head  the  imperial  crown,  thus  restoring  the  empire  in  the 
West  and  constituting  Charlemagne  emperor.  Irene  was 
then  officiating  as  empress  in  Constantinople,  but  the  West 
refused  to  recognize  her  or  her  government  and  declared 
the  throne  to  be  vacant;  hence,  they  claimed,  there  was 
place  for  Charlemagne  to  become  emperor.  There  were 
now  two  political  powers,  each  claiming  to  be  the  only  em- 
pire and  refusing  to  recognize  the  claims  of  the  other. 

As  a  matter  of  fact  Charlemagne's  act  was  one  of  the 
most  fateful  in  the  whole  history  of  Europe.  It  laid  the 
foundation  for  the  long  and  exhausting  struggle  between 
the  emperor  and  the  pope,  between  Germany  and  the  papal 
power  in  Italy,  which  is  to  break  out  in  the  next  period. 

After  the  death  of  Charlemagne  the  Prankish  imperial 
power  decayed  very  rapidly,  but  in  the  tenth  century  it  was 
restored  by  the  great  emperors,  Henry  the  Powler  and  Otto 
the  Great.  In  962  Otto  again  made  his  way  to  Rome, 
where  he  deposed  a  very  unworthy  pope,  appointed  a 
worthier  one  and  compelled  the  Romans  to  promise  never 
to  select  a  pope  in  the  future  without  the  emperor's  ap- 
proval. He  then  had  himself  crowned  emperor  of  The 
Holy  Roman  Empire  of  the  German  Nation.  Por  nearly 
a  century  after  this  time  the  German  emperor  dominated 
the  papacy,  appointing  and  deposing  popes  at  will.  And  it 
must  be  admitted  that  this  method  of  procedure  materially 
improved  the  character  and  ability  of  the  popes.  Por  a 
long  while  none  but  Germans  were  appointed  to  this  high 
office.     The  fortunes  and  the  moral  condition  of  the  papacy 


BEGINNING  OF  THE    MIDDLE   AGES  65 

were  never  again  as  low  as  they  had  been  the  first  half  of 
the  tenth  century. 


§39 

THE   GROWING   POWER  OF   THE   PAPACY 

Many  things  contributed  to  the  elevation  of  the  pope  in 
this  period.  The  rise  and  spread  of  Mohammedanism 
weakened  his  great  rivals  in  the  East,  alliance  with  the 
Franks  gave  him  a  powerful  political  support  in  the  West, 
the  establishment  of  the  Papal  State  made  him  a  political 
ruler  over  central  Italy  and  secured  entre  into  diplomatic 
circles,  missions  extended  his  sway  over  all  of  western 
and  most  of  northern  Europe,  and  finally  the  general  de- 
cay of  society  made  all  elements  turn  to  him  for  support. 
By  the  middle  of  the  ninth  century  he  began  to  cherish 
ambitions  of  ruhng  over  the  churches  of  the  whole  world 
and  over  the  princes  of  the  western  world.  About  the  mid- 
dle of  this  century  there  was  forged,  somewhere  in  Ger- 
many or  France,  a  document  called  the  "  Donation  of  Con- 
stantine,"  in  which  it  was  declared  that  the  Emperor  Con- 
stantine  had  on  his  conversion  withdrawn  from  Rome  and 
donated  all  his  imperial  dignities  and  paraphernalia  to  the 
pope,  constituting  him  ruler  over  all  the  churches  of  the 
whole  world  and  over  all  the  princes  of  the  West.  The 
popes,  even  if  they  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  fabrication 
of  this  document,  eagerly  seized  and  used  it  through  suc- 
ceeding centuries  as  a  means  of  realizing  its  ideas.  Hence- 
forth there  swayed  before  their  eyes  continually  the  hope  of 
dominating  the  whole  world. 

As  missionary  effort  extended  into  new  heathen  territory 
bishoprics  and  archbishoprics  were  established  and  the  hier- 
archy was  extended  in  obedience  to  the  Roman  See.  In 
Germany  many  of  the  bishops  were  elevated  into  the  posi- 
tion of  civil  rulers  and  were  rated  as  princes.  In  order  to 
control  them  the  emperors  came  to  assert  their  right  to 


66  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

appoint  them,  insisting  that  the  episcopal  power  was  so 
great  as  to  render  such  control  necessary,  thus  laying  the 
foundations  for  future  struggles  with  the  popes. 

§40 

CHRISTIAN    LIFE   AND   WORSHIP 

During  this  period  monasticism  grew  to  a  position  of 
leadership  in  the  Catholic  church  —  a  power  which  it  has 
never  since  lost.  Monasteries  for  both  men  and  women 
were  multiplied  in  the  older  Christian  lands  and  were  rap- 
idly established  in  the  newly  Christianized  countries.  In 
fact  the  monks  and  nuns  had  before  the  end  of  this  period 
come  to  constitute  almost  the  sole  agency  for  the  prosecu- 
tion of  missionary  work.  Pushing  far  out  into  heathen 
territory  they  established  monasteries  and  from  these  in- 
stitutions by  preaching,  teaching  and  service  they  evan- 
gelized the  surrounding  country.  Almost  every  monastery 
had  a  school  attached  and  for  a  long  time  these  were  the 
only  schools  among  the  Germanic  peoples.  The  monks  wrote 
and  copied  the  books,  taught  the  schools,  produced  the  litera- 
ture, and  in  general  were  the  principal  conservators  of  the 
religion  and  civilization  of  the  time.  The  monasteries  in 
this  and  the  succeeding  periods  were  the  most  famous  in- 
stitutions of  the  Christian  world. 

As  would  be  expected  under  the  conditions  detailed  above 
there  was  a  general  decline  in  Christian  life  and  worship 
all  over  the  world.  The  church  continued  to  absorb  ele- 
ments from  the  heathenism  which  it  was  supplanting  and 
thus  continued  to  grow  more  corrupt.  Nearly  all  the  super- 
stitions of  the  Germanic  world  soon  found  place  in  the 
German  church.  The  conflict  of  races,  the  mingling  of 
various  degrees  of  culture,  the  breaking  down  of  religious 
convictions  and  social  customs  led  to  an  inevitable  decline 
in  morals.  High  church  officials  were  often  chosen  for 
their  social  position  or  political  influence  rather  than  for 


BEGINNING  OF  THE  MIDDLE  AGES  (i'J 

any  fitness  to  perform  the  spiritual  functions  of  the  church. 
Bishops,  archbishops  and  even  popes  were  sometimes  no- 
toriously immoral  and  utterly  careless  of  their  duties  as 
shepherds  of  souls.  The  lower  clergy  were  usually  ig- 
norant and  little  fitted  for  their  duties.  This  is  the  ''  dark 
age"  of  European  history  from  the  moral  and  religious 
standpoint  as  well  as  from  the  cultural.  The  church  of  the 
West  suffered  with  the  general  decline. 

It  was  a  great  misfortune  that  the  church  carried  the 
Latin  as  the  language  of  culture  and  religion  into  these 
Germanic  lands.  The  Bible  and  the  worship  were  retained 
in  this  foreign  and  dying  tongue,  thus  depriving  the  great 
mass  of  the  people  of  acquaintance  with  the  Bible  and 
adequate  understanding  of  the  service.  By  this  means 
the  unity  and  uniformity  of  the  church  was  maintained, 
but  at  the  expense  of  efficiency  in  instruction.  For  several 
centuries  only  fragments  of  the  Scriptures  were  translated 
into  the  living  languages  of  the  European  peoples. 

The  process  of  endowing  the  churches  and  monasteries 
proceeded  very  rapidly,  and  they  were  also  permitted  to 
collect  the  tithe  or  church  tax  in  many  parts  of  the  Chris- 
tian world.  Men  believed  that  they  could  purchase  blessings 
by  the  gift  of  money  to  the  church  and  this  belief  was  a 
mighty  stimulus  to  liberality. 

Private  confession  began  to  be  common  and  was  occasion- 
ally required;  the  use  of  the  organ  in  worship  was  intro- 
duced in  the  West  in  the  eighth  century.  The  church  had 
long  been  accustomed  to  impose  punishment  on  its  members 
as  a  part  of  its  discipline.  During  this  period  the  custom 
was  established  of  permitting  the  commutation  of  a  part  of 
this  punishment  by  the  payment  of  money  into  the  treasury 
of  the  church.  This  commutation  was  called  an  indulgence, 
and  was  destined  to  play  a  very  important  part  in  the  future 
history  of  the  Catholic  church. 


68  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

ANTI-CATHOLIC   PARTIES 

We  have  thus  far  been  following  the  main  stream  of 
Christian  history,  but  not  all  Christians  were  Catholics. 
Not  only  did  the  Nestorians  and  other  independent  bodies 
in  the  East  maintain  their  existence ;  some  of  them,  notably 
the  Nestorians,  flourished. 

Still  other  evangelical  parties  appear.  Perhaps  the  most 
important  of  these  were  the  Paulicians,  who  first  come  into 
the  view  of  history  about  the  middle  of  the  seventh  century 
in  southeastern  Armenia.  Their  name  is  said  to  have  been 
derived  from  the  apostle,  Paul,  whose  teachings  they  sought 
to  reproduce  in  their  churches.  They  seem  to  have  pre- 
served democratic  church  government,  to  have  had  only 
one  grade  of  ministers,  to  have  practiced  the  baptism  of 
believers  only;  they  rejected  saint,  image  and  relic  worship, 
the  hierarchy  and  the  doctrine  of  purgatory;  in  short  they 
rejected  the  whole  sacramental  theory  of  salvation  and  be- 
lieved and  practiced  a  type  of  Christianity  that  was  almost 
wholly  biblical. 

They  were  bitterly  persecuted  by  the  Catholics,  but  main- 
tained their  existence  in  Armenia  and  Asia  Minor  for  sev- 
eral centuries,  being  at  one  time  a  very  influential  part  of  the 
body  politic.  Some  of  them  were  transplanted  to  the  Bal- 
kan region,  where  they  flourished  for  several  centuries  in 
Bulgaria  and  neighboring  lands. 

The  Bogomiles  or  Friends  of  God  were  another  anti- 
Catholic  party  of  this  period.  They  appeared  in  south- 
eastern Europe  about  the  middle  of  the  tenth  century  and: 
may  have  been  derived  from  the  Paulicians,  though  they 
were  less  evangelical.  They  rejected  the  entire  CathoHc 
system  with  all  possible  decision,  but  were  themselves  more 
or  less  heretical.  They  rejected  baptism  and  the  supper, 
were  ascetic  in  morals  and  dualistic  in  theology. 


FIFTH  PERIOD— 1050  TO  1300 

A.     HISTORY  IN  THE  EAST 

§42 

GENERAL  TENDENCIES 

The  tendency  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  Christian  world 
was  steadily  downward.  The  new  menace  was  the  Turks. 
These  rude  and  cruel  heathen  people,  coming  from  the  in- 
terior of  Asia,  appeared  in  eastern  Persia  about  the  middle 
of  the  ninth  century.  Gradually  they  acquired  unity  and 
power  and  finally  overthrew  the  Persian  government,  ac- 
cepted Mohammedanism  and  usurped  the  political  authority 
of  the  Caliph  at  Bagdad,  establishing  themselves  as  the  po- 
litical leaders  of  eastern  Mohammedanism.  By  1050  they 
were  the  masters  of  Persia.  They  then  turned  westward 
against  both  the  empire  which  was  Christian  and  the  Arabs 
who  were  Mohammedan.  Nothing  could  resist  them. 
They  rapidly  wrested  Armenia  and  the  interior  of  Asia 
Minor  from  the  empire,  and  Syria  and  Palestine  from  the 
Fatimate  caliphate  of  Cairo.  Jerusalem  was  captured  from 
the  Arabs  in  1075. 

§42^ 

THE   CRUSADES 

This  advance  of  the  Turks  occasioned  the  Crusades. 
The  Turks  were  much  more  ruthless  than  the  Arabs  had 
been,  particularly  in  their  dealings  with  the  stream  of  Chris- 
tian pilgrims  that  now  flowed  continually  from  western 
Europe  to  the  holy  places  of  Palestine.  The  hardships  and 
sufferings  of  these  pilgrims  at  the  hands  of  these  Turkish 

69 


70  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

conquerors  of  Palestine  gradually  aroused  all  western 
Europe  to  attempt  to  recover  and  bring  under  Christian 
control  the  holy  places.  These  efforts  are  called  Crusades 
or  Wars  of  the  Cross,  and  constitute  one  of  the  most  ro- 
mantic chapters  of  Christian  history.  They  began  in  1095 
and  did  not  end  till  1292,  almost  exactly  two  centuries. 
The  first  Crusade,  consisting  almost  exclusively  of  Prankish 
and  Norman  nobles  and  their  followers,  succeeded  in  re- 
covering all  of  Syria  and  Palestine  and  much  territory  on 
the  uppper  Euphrates.  A  Kingdom  of  Jerusalem  and  some 
smaller  governments  were  set  up,  and  the  Roman  Catholic 
church  was  established  in  the  conquered  territory.  This 
was  a  tremendous  check  to  the  Turkish  power  enabling  the 
eastern  empire  to  recover  control  over  most  of  Asia  Minor 
and  roll  back  the  Turkish  flood  for  a  century  and  rmore. 

But  in  1203  the  fourth  Crusade  turned  aside  to  Con- 
stantinople to  replace  on  the  throne  Isaac  Angelus,  who 
had  been  deposed  and  blinded  by  his  brother.  Constanti- 
nople was  captured  and  Isaac  was  restored,  but  in  attempt- 
ing to  raise  the  indemnity  which  the  Crusaders  required  for 
their  services  he  provoked  a  revolt  in  which  he  lost  his 
life.  The  Crusaders  then  captured  the  city  again  and  set 
up  a  Latin  Empire  over  the  city  and  as  much  of  the  im- 
perial territory  as  they  could  control.  As  in  Palestine  the 
Roman  Catholic  church  was  established  throughout  this 
territory  in  the  room  of  the  Greek. 

But  they  could  not  conquer  all  the  imperial  territory.  In- 
dependent Greek  governments  were  set  up  where  the  Cru- 
saders could  not  control.  Gradually  that  one  which  had  its 
capital  at  Nicsea  gained  the  upper  hand  and  eventually  in 
1 261  succeeded  in  recapturing  Constantinople  and  driving 
the  Crusaders  out  of  the  country.  In  the  struggle  the  city 
was  stripped  of  most  of  its  wealth  and  was  never  again  able 
to  recover  its  former  power.  At  the  end  of  the  period  the 
governments  of  both  the  empire  and  of  the  Turks  were  in 
disorder.  This  period  had  been  one  of  general  decay  in  the 
East. 


FIFTH  PERIOD— 1050  TO  1300 

B.     HISTORY  IN  THE  WEST 
§43 

GENERAL   TENDENCIES 

In  the  West  the  general  tendency  during  this  period  was 
steadily  and  continually  upward  in  almost  every  respect. 
This  was  particularly  the  case  among  the  Germanic  peoples. 
The  Mohammedans  continued  to  hold  all  of  north  Africa, 
most  of  Spain  and  the  islands  of  the  western  Mediterranean. 
Naturally  there  was  stagnation  in  these  regions  as  far  as 
Christianity  was  concerned,  though  there  was  a  striking 
culture  among  the  Mohammedan  Moors  in  Spain. 

There  was  revival  of  intellectual  activity  and  moral 
earnestness  along  the  northern  shores  of  the  Mediterranean 
and  in  Italy,  but  the  greatest  gains  were  farther  north. 
The  Scandinavian  peoples,  known  as  Northmen  or  Nor- 
mans, had  swooped  down  on  their  more  civilized  southern 
neighbors  in  the  preceding  period,  robbing,  burning  and 
destroying.  They  had  thus  harried  the  coasts  of  Germany 
and  northern  France,  and  had  almost  completely  overrun 
England.  They  were  then  raw  heathen.  During  this 
period  they  settled  down,  accepted  the  Christian  religion 
and  made  themselves  one  of  the  most  vital  elements  in  the 
life  of  the  nations  where  they  made  their  home.  In  north- 
ern France  they  populated  the  important  district  henceforth 
known  as  Normandy.  In  1066  William,  the  Duke  of  Nor- 
mandy, made  himself  king  of  England,  thus  binding  to- 
gether sections  of  France  and  the  English  crown  in  a  way  that 
entailed  endless  bloodshed  and  suffering  in  later  centuries. 

The  Normans  also  passed  through  the  Strait  of  Gib- 
raltar into  the  Mediterranean,  overthrew  the  Greek  power 
in  southern  Italy  and  the  Mohammedan  power  in  Sicily  and 
established  a  Norman  duchy  which  later  became  the  king- 

71 


"^2,  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

dom  of  Sicily.  For  centuries  they  were  an  important  po- 
litical factor  in  the  history  of  the  Mediterranean.  Thus 
order  was  being  slowly  established  and  civilization  extended 
over  all  of  western  Christendom. 

§44 

MISSIONS   AND    CULTURE 

During  this  period  the  remainder  of  northern  and  west- 
ern Europe  was  converted,  becoming  nominally  Christian 
from  the  Mediterranean  to  the  Arctic  Ocean.  The  religion 
was  Catholicism  of  course  and  at  every  step  it  had  taken 
on  some  element  of  the  heathenism  it  was  conquering.  As 
heretofore  its  advances  had  been  made  through  opposition, 
discouragement  and  sufTering.  But  the  work  was  done. 
A  few  centuries  in  the  future  these  countries  will  take  the 
lead  in  throwing  off  the  papal  yoke,  and  will  draw  from 
the  Bible  a  spiritual  and  moral  power  which  will  crush  the 
ecclesiastical  shell  and  liberate  the  spiritual  kernel  of  Chris- 
tianity. 

There  was  in  the  period  a  religious  revival  which  was 
accompanied  by  growing  intellectual  activity.  Monastic 
and  cathedral  schools  were  planted  everywhere  as  the  chief 
means  of  transmitting  to  the  Germanic  peoples  the  culture 
which  had  once  belonged  to  the  Latins.  In  the  eleventh 
and  twelfth  centuries  some  of  these  schools  began  to  grow 
into  universities,  in  whose  class-rooms  the  ablest  men  of  the 
times  lectured.  Thus  Oxford,  Cambridge,  Paris,  Cologne, 
Bologna  and  others  arose  in  these  centuries.  They  were 
supposed  to  teach  all  knowledge  and  were  often  attended 
by  thousands  of  students. 

In  addition  to  the  founding  of  schools  this  age  produced 
an  extensive  literature  dealing  almost  exclusively  with  re- 
ligious and  theological  themes.  It  was  in  the  Latin  lan- 
guage and  was  intended  for  the  learned  only,  for  as  yet 
there  was  no  demand  for  a  popular  literature.  It  was 
marked  by  acute  and  profound  thinking,  and  still  to  this  day 


FIFTH    PERIOD —  IO5O  TO    I3OO  73 

deeply  influences  the  Roman  Catholic  church.  Nearly  all 
the  distinctive  Roman  CathoHc  doctrines  were  worked  out 
during  this  period,  such  as  transubstantiation,  the  seven 
sacraments,  purgatory,  indulgences,  etc.  Judged  by  the 
quantity  and  quality  of  its  output  this  must  be  termed  an 
age  of  great  intellectual  activity.  The  foundation  for  the 
culture  of  modern  Europe  was  securely  laid.  Much  of  the 
intellectual  activity  and  output  of  this  period  is  known  as 
scholasticism. 

§45 

GROWTH    OF    PAPAL   POWER 

Beginning  about  1050  the  papacy  grew  rapidly  in  influ- 
ence and  power,  reaching  the  very  apex  of  its  glory  in  the 
pontificate  of  Innocent  III  about  121 5.  Many  things  con- 
tributed to  this  growth,  but  the  most  important  was  a  series 
of  very  able  men  in  the  papal  chair.  About  1050  Hilde- 
brand,  afterwards  Gregory  VII,  began  his  fight  for  the  re- 
form of  the  church  in  head  and  members,  that  is  from  the 
papacy  down  to  the  parish  priest.  To  accomplish  this  re- 
form he  believed  it  was  necessary  to  free  the  church  from 
all  control  by  the  state  and  indeed  to  make  the  state  sub- 
servient to  the  church.  Accordingly  it  was  decreed  by  a 
council  in  1059  that  the  pope  must  be  elected  in  the  future 
by  the  cardinal  bishops  and  only  be  approved  by  the  other 
cardinals  and  the  clergy  and  people  of  Rome.  This  action 
relieved  the  papal  elections  of  imperial  pressure  and  also 
from  the  Italian  factions  that  often  disgraced  the  elections. 
In  II 79  it  was  decreed  by  another  council  that  two  thirds 
of  the  cardinals  were  necessary  to  an  election,  thus  making 
the  election  of  two  popes  improbable  in  the  future. 

Other  factors  in  this  rise  were  activities  of  papal  mission- 
aries, the  founding  of  great  Catholic  schools,  the  leadership 
of  the  crusades,  the  codification  of  canon  law  into  a  well 
articulated    and    consistent    legal    system    which    was    ex- 


74  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

tended  over  the  whole  Catholic  world,  the  dispatch  of 
legates  to  all  parts  of  the  world  as  the  pope's  personal 
representatives,  the  enlargement  of  the  monastic  orders  and 
their  subjection  to  the  direct  authority  of  the  pope  and  the 
final  triumph  of  sacerdotal  celibacy  which  detached  the 
clergy  from  all  social  ties  and  attached  them  directly  and 
absolutely  to  their  ecclesiastical  superiors. 

§46 

STRUGGLE   BETWEEN    CHURCH    AND   STATE 

The  rise  of  the  church  precipitated  a  great  struggle  with 
the  state.  The  church  had  long  since  become  a  political 
power  that  the  world  had  to  reckon  with.  Its  immense 
wealth  in  real  property,  which  had  been  accumulated  by 
the  gifts  of  the  faithful  through  the  centuries,  its  great  moral 
influence  over  men  and  the  feudal  authority  of  many  of  its 
bishops,  archbishops  and  abbots  made  it  appear  necessary 
for  the  state  to  control  it.  For  centuries  this  had  been 
accomplished  by  the  appointment  of  the  high  ecclesiastical 
officials  by  the  princes.  But  the  princes  had  frequently  ap- 
pointed unworthy  men,  and  had  sometimes  sold  the  posi- 
tions outright.  The  conflicting  interests  of  these  two  mighty 
powers  occasioned  the  greatest  struggle  between  church 
and  state  that  the  world  has  ever  seen.  It  began  about  the 
middle  of  the  eleventh  century  and  raged  for  two  hundred 
years  until  the  church  and  the  empire  (the  country  chiefly 
involved),  were  both  well-nigh  exhausted.  It  began  by  the 
popes  forbidding  the  princes  to  appoint  ecclesiastical  offi- 
cials ;  the  princes  responded  by  cutting  off  papal  revenues 
and  deposing  the  popes.  The  popes  again  and  again  excom- 
municated emperors  and  kings,  put  their  countries  under 
the  interdict  and  forced  them  to  obedience.  Henry  IV  of 
Germany  stood  before  the  castle  of  Canossa  in  midwinter, 
in  the  garb  of  a  suppliant  pilgrim,  beseeching  the  forgive- 
ness of  his  holiness  the  pope  ;  a  century  later  Frederick  Bar- 


FIFTH    PERIOD — IO5O  TO    I3OO  75 

barossa  at  Venice  led  the  pope's  horse  as  a  sign  of  his  sub- 
mission to  the  Holy  Father;  in  121 5  John  of  England  took 
off  his  crown,  handed  it  to  a  representative  of  the  pope  and 
received  it  back  as  a  fief  of  the  Holy  See.  Lesser  digni- 
taries were  treated  accordingly.  The  papal  theory  was  that 
the  church,  being  the  spiritual  power,  must  rule  over  the 
state  which  is  a  secular  power.  The  spiritual  sword  is 
wielded  hy  the  church,  while  the  temporal  sword  is  wielded 
hy  the  state  for  the  church  and  at  the  command  of  the 
church. 

On  the  other  hand  the  state  responded  as  energetically  as 
possible,  and  strong  rulers  were  usually  able  to  resist  the 
papal  claims  and  assumptions.  Still  at  the  end  of  our  period 
the  church  seemed  to  have  the  better  of  the  struggle.  The 
empire  was  in  disorder  while  the  church  appeared  to  be 
supreme. 

§47 

GROWTH    OF    MONASTICISM 

This  was  preeminently  the  monastic  age  of  Christianity. 
All  the  old  orders  were  reformed  and  enlarged,  and  many 
new  ones  were  founded.  But  the  most  significant  phe- 
nomenon in  this  field  was  the  appearance  of  a  new  type  of 
monasticism,  namely  that  of  the  brotherhood.  The  older 
monasticism  remained  within  monastic  walls,  chiefly  con- 
cerned with  the  salvation  of  its  own  soul  and  incidentally 
rendering  such  service  as  it  could  within  the  narrow  con- 
fines of  the  monastery.  The  new  monasticism  took  the 
same  vows  of  poverty,  chastity  and  obedience,  but  its  aim 
was  service.  It  went  out  into  the  world  and  devoted  itself 
to  the  service  of  the  people,  asking  only  bread  and  simple 
clothing  in  return.  These  monks  were  known  as  friars 
(brothers)  and  because  they  lived  from  what  they  received 
from  the  people  they  were  called  mendicants  or  beggars. 
The  two  great  orders  of  this  type  founded  at  this  time  were 
the  Franciscans,  founded  by  Francis  of  Assisi,  in  the  year 


y6  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

121 3,  and  the  Dominicans  founded  by  Dominic,  a  Spanish 
noble,   in   121 6. 

Francis  was  a  man  of  wonderful  spiritual  powers  and 
unselfish  devotion.  He  gathered  around  him  and  ultimately 
organized  a  body  of  likeminded  men  whose  official  title  was 
fratres  minor es  (Little  Brothers), —  an  organization  whose 
purpose  was  service  in  all  possible  ways.  The  official  desig- 
nation of  the  other  order  was  fratres  predicatores  (Preach- 
ing Brothers),  their  special  object  being  popular  preaching 
primarily  to  meet  the  popular  preaching  of  the  Waldenses 
and  other  evangelical  parties  in  southeastern  France. 

Both  orders  spread  rapidly  over  the  Catholic  world  and 
everywhere  awakened  new  life  in  the  church.  They  soon  be- 
gan to  furnish  the  theological  professors  of  the  universities, 
the  most  effective  popes,  the  missionaries  and  to  fill  most  of 
the  other  positions  of  influence  and  importance  in  the 
church.  Like  the  other  orders  they  eventually  became  rich 
and  corrupt,  thus  arousing  opposition  and  resentment. 
They  differed  from  each  other  in  theology  and  in  other  re- 
spects and  were  often  sharp  and  bitter  rivals,  but  henceforth 
they  did  a  large  share  of  the  hard  work  of  the  Catholic 
church.  Each  was  controlled  by  a  general  who  lived  at 
Rome  in  close  relations  with  the  pope. 

§48 

CATHOLIC   THEOLOGY 

In  this  period  the  formulation  of  Catholic  theology  was 
virtually  completed.  It  was  the  second  great  period  of 
theological  discussion  and  formulation,  the  fourth  and  fifth 
centuries  being  the  first.  In  the  first  period  those  doctrines 
which  are  still  accepted  by  nearly  all  Christians  were  stated ; 
in  this  period  the  doctrines  which  are  distinctively  Catholic, 
separating  that  church  from  other  Christian  bodies,  were 
drawn  up.  The  church  produced  many  able  and  famous 
men  who  are  still  held  in  great  reverence  by  the  Catholic 


FIFTH    PERIOD — IO5O  TO    I3OO  TJ 

church.  Some  of  these  are  Anselm  (1059-1109),  an 
Italian  of  great  learning  and  saintly  life,  who  became  arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury  in  England  and  stated  the  doctrine  of 
the  atonement  as  most  orthodox  Christians,  Protestant  as 
well  as  Catholic,  still  accept  it;  Abelard  (i 079-11 42),  a 
Frenchman  and  one  of  the  most  famous  teachers  of  all  time ; 
Bernard  of  Clairvaux  (1091-1153),  another  Frenchman  who 
was  a  great  churchman,  preacher  and  hymn-writer;  Peter 
Lombard  (1100-64)  who  compiled  the  most  famous  text- 
book of  theology  in  the  Middle  Ages;  Thomas  Aquinas 
(1227-74),  one  of  the  profoundest  thinkers  of  Christian 
history,  a  voluminous  writer  who  is  still  regarded  as  the 
teacher  of  the  Catholic  church,  its  most  influential  theolog- 
ian; John  Duns  Scotus  (1266-1308),  a  Scotchman,  subtle 
dialectician  and  bold  thinker.  The  antagonisms  of  the 
last  two  named  divided  the  whole  Catholic  world  into  two 
hostile  schools  of  thought,  known  as  Thomists  and  Scotists, 
for  several  centuries. 

Several  of  the  most  characteristic  doctrines  of  the  Catholic 
church  were  discussed  to  a  finish  in  this  period.  Some  of 
these  were  transitbstantiation  (the  change  of  the  substance 
of  the  bread  and  the  wine  into  the  actual  body  and  blood  of 
Christ),  formally  adopted  as  the  doctrine  of  the  church  at 
the  fourth  Lateran  Council  in  1215;  the  formal  approval  of 
substitutes  for  immersion  as  baptism  at  the  same  Council; 
the  doctrine  of  purgatory,  the  seven  sacraments,  indulgen- 
ces, etc.,  to  be  formulated  at  the  Council  of  Trent.  In 
short  this  was  preeminently  the  Catholic  period  in  doctrine 
and  life. 

§49 

WORSHIP   IN   THIS   PERIOD 

The  sacrifice  of  the  Mass  had  now  fully  established 
itself  as  the  center  and  heart  of  Catholic  worship.  As  a 
ceremony  it  consists  of  the  recital  of  texts  of  Scripture 
accompanied  by  symbolic  actions  intended  to  reproduce  the 


yS  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

events  of  the  passion  of  our  Lord  from  his  arrest  to  his  as- 
cension. In  the  midst  of  the  ceremony  the  bread  and  the 
wine  are  consecrated  and  thereby  transformed  into  the 
glorified  body  and  blood  of  our  Lord,  to  be  worshiped  in 
the  service  and  later  taken  in  the  communion.  The  whole 
ceremony  of  the  Mass,  however,  is  regarded  as  a  repetition 
of  the  sacrifice  of  Jesus  Christ  on  Calvary  in  every  respect 
except  that  there  is  no  blood.  The  Mass  is  "  the  unbloody 
sacrifice."  Every  Mass  in  all  of  Christendom  is  the  repeti- 
tion of  that  first  sacrifice  of  our  Lord.  The  cup  was 
gradually  withdrawn  from  the  laity  in  this  period  to  pre- 
vent the  spilling  of  the  consecrated  wine,  and  infant  com- 
munion, which  had  been  practiced  for  centuries,  was  dis- 
continued largely  for  the  same  reason.  Some  of  the  con- 
secrated wafers  were  constantly  kept  at  the  churches  to  be 
administered  to  those  who  were  in  extreme  need.  In  com- 
munion the  wafer  is  placed  on  the  tongue  of  the  recipient 
by  the  hand  of  the  priest  and  it  is  regarded  as  a  mortal  sin 
to  remove  it  for  any  reason  whatsoever.  Thus  the  Mass 
and  the  communion  became  the  most  sacred  mysteries  of 
the  church  and  its  worship. 

There  is  a  revival  of  preaching  in  this  period  due  chiefly 
to  the  Crusades  and  the  activities  of  the  new  evangelical 
sects  in  southern  Europe.  They  propagated  their  tenets 
by  quiet  preaching  in  the  open  air  as  well  as  in  buildings. 
So  successful  was  their  propaganda  that  the  Catholics  felt 
constrained  to  follow  their  example  and  fight  them  with 
their  own  weapons.  The  Crusades  had  also  stimulated 
preaching.  They  offered  a  great  object  to  which  men  had 
to  be  persuaded  by  direct  personal  appeal.  The  result  was 
the  development  of  a  number  of  really  great  preachers  and 
much  popular  preaching  of  a  lower  order.  Peter  the  Her- 
mit and  Urban  II,  the  preachers  of  the  first  Crusade, 
Bernard  of  Clairvaux  who  aroused  Europe  to  the  second 
Crusade  and  others.  The  Dominican  order  was  founded, 
we  have  seen,  for  the  express  purpose  of  preaching,  and 
called  itself  "  Preaching  Brothers." 


FIFTH    PERIOD —  IO50  TO    I3OO  79 

Much  was  made  of  the  annual  seasons  of  worship,  thus 
overshadowing  the  Lord's  day.  Almost  every  day  was  de- 
voted to  some  saint  or  to  some  event  in  the  apostolic  history 
or  the  Hfe  of  Jesus.  The  adoration  of  the  wafer  at  the 
elevation  of  the  host  was  ordained  in  1217  and  the  feast  of 
Corpus  Christi  (the  body  of  Christ),  in  1264.  The  name 
of  Mary  was  inserted  in  the  liturgy  and  the  Ave  Maria 
began  to  come  into  use  in  the  eleventh  century,  and  about 
the  same  time  the  feast  of  the  Immaculate  Conception  began 
to  appear. 

Perhaps  the  most  notable  achievement  in  the  realm  of 
worship  in  this  period  was  the  development  in  church 
architecture.  Many  of  the  most  splendid  churches  and 
cathedrals  of  the  world  were  erected  in  this  period.  In 
England,  France  and  Germany  all  the  artistic  genius  of 
Christendom  was  employed  upon  these  glorious  houses  of 
worship.  They  were  large,  highly  ornamented,  enormously 
costly  in  time  and  money.  The  beauty  and  impressiveness 
of  the  great  cathedrals  and  monastic  buildings  have  never 
been  surpassed  in  the  history  of  architecture.  They  were 
built  as  places  of  Catholic  worship  and  burial,  being  en- 
tirely unsuited  to  preaching  and  the  church  life  of  to-day. 
They  were  usually  of  stone,  elaborately  carved  on  the  out- 
side, sustained  by  massive  pillars  on  the  inside,  surmounted 
with  domes,  tall  spires  or  heavy  towers  and  adorned  with 
wonderful  art-glass  windows.  These  enormous  piles  were 
years,  even  centuries,  in  building,  their  purpose  the  glory 
of  God.  Some  of  the  most  notable  of  these  great  churches 
are  Canterbury,  York  and  Durham  cathedrals  in  England, 
Notre  Dame  and  Rheims  in  France,  Strassburg  in  Ger- 
many and  Milan  in  Italy. 

§50 

THE   RISE   OF  EVANGELICAL  SECTS 

It  is  possible  that  evangelical  Christians  had  existed  at 
various  places  in  western  Europe  through  all  the  centuries 


8o  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

of  Catholic  dominance  as  we  have  seen  them  in  Asia  Minor 
and  eastern  Europe.  Certain  it  is  that  a  number  of  sects 
appear  in  this  period  so  powerful  that  the  church  was  un- 
able to  suppress  them.  The  opposition  of  these  parties  took 
many  forms.  Sometimes  it  remained  in  the  Catholic 
church  and  attempted  to  reform  that  body.  More  often 
it  was  outside  the  Catholic  church  and  was  bitterly  hostile 
to  its  doctrines,  practices,  worship  and  organization.  The 
sects  began  to  appear  about  the  year  looo  and  could  never 
be  stamped  out  entirely  from  that  time  onward.  The  earli- 
est in  western  Europe  were  known  as  Albigenses.  They 
appeared  in  southeastern  France  and  opposed  the  Catholic 
church  at  almost  every  point,  though  they  were  themselves 
unscriptural  in  some  of  their  doctrines. 

A  much  more  evangelical  party  appeared  in  the  twelfth 
century  in  western  Switzerland  and  eastern  France  known 
as  Petrohriisians  and  Henricans.  Still  another  party, 
known  as  VValdenscs,  originated  about  1170  at  Lyons  in 
southern  France.  They  were  founded  by  Peter  Waldo,  a 
wealthy  Catholic  merchant  converted  by  the  Scriptures,  who 
left  his  business,  distributed  his  property  and  began  itiner- 
ant evangelical  preaching  about  1178.  He  was  joined  by 
other  likeminded  men  who  called  themselves  the  "  Poor 
Men  of  Lyons."  In  11 79  they  were  forbidden  by  the 
Lateran  Council  to  preach,  and  when  they  continued  they 
were  excommunicated  in  1184.  They  then  organized  as  a 
separate  hostile  sect,  and  spread  rapidly  over  much  of 
France,  northern  Italy,  Germany,  Austria  and  Spain.  They 
were  thoroughly  evangelical,  rejecting  every  distinctive  doc- 
trine and  practice  of  the  Catholic  church.  Notwithstanding 
fearful  persecutions  they  were  able  to  maintain  their  exist- 
ence, and  were  a  powerful  evangelical  leaven  in  all  of 
central  Europe.  They  are  even  to-day  the  strongest  evan- 
gelical party  in  Italy. 


FIFTH   PERIOD — IO5O  TO    I3OO  8I 

§51 

THE   INQUISITION 

Since  the  days  of  Augustine  the  church  had  been  in- 
cHned  to  persecute  heretics,  feehng  that  the  best  interests 
of  reHgion  and  society  as  well  as  the  salvation  of  the 
heretic  himself  were  thereby  attained.  Since  the  days  of 
Constantine  the  state  had  been  willing  now  and  then  to 
carry  into  effect  the  wishes  of  the  church  in  this  respect. 
Several  times  blood  had  flowed  freely,  the  heathen  govern- 
ments having  set  the  example  followed  by  the  Christians 
later. 

For  a  long  while  the  apprehension  of  heretics  had  been 
regarded  as  the  duty  of  the  bishops.  But  some  of  these, 
owing  to  kindliness  or  indifference,  were  negligent  or  in- 
efficient in  hunting  down  heretics.  After  several  councils 
had  vainly  tried  to  stiffen  the  persecutions  it  was  decided 
to  create  a  separate  agency  whose  sole  duty  it  should  be 
to  extirpate  heresy.  This  tribunal  known  as  the  Inquisition 
and  organized  by  the  pope,  was  in  1232  placed  in  the 
hands  of  the  Dominicans.  It  was  entirely  independent  of 
the  bishops  and  directly  subject  to  the  pope,  having  a  jur- 
isdiction independent  of  that  of  the  state  and  the  local 
church  officials.  This  was  probably  the  most  cruel  and 
inhuman  tribunal  known  to  history.  It  could  arrest  with- 
out stating  the  reason,  was  not  compelled  to  produce  wit- 
nesses at  the  trial,  and  was  permitted  to  use  torture  in  ex- 
torting confessions  from  the  accused  or  testimony  from 
unwilling  witnesses.  Upon  conviction  of  heresy  the  pun- 
ishment for  those  who  renounced  their  views  was  life-long 
imprisonment ;  those  who  refused  to  recant  were  condemned 
to  death  and  turned  over  to  the  civil  authorities  who  were 
required  under  pain  of  excommunication  to  execute  the 
church's  sentence.  Usually  heretics  were  executed  by  burn- 
ing or  some  other  horribly  painful  and  humiliating  method. 
Rarely  did  one  who  fell  under  the  suspicion  of  heresy  ever 


82  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

escape.  Thousands  were  put  to  death,  especially  in  France 
and  Spain  where  the  government  was  more  disposed  to 
obey  the  church  than  in  Germany  and  England.  The 
Catholic  church  will  never  be  able  to  cleanse  itself  from 
the  shame  of  these  bloody  tragedies.  Our  period  closes  with 
the  Inquisition  doing  its  worst. 


SIXTH  PERIOD— 1300  TO  1517 

A.     EASTERN  CHRISTIANITY 

§52 

INVASION   OF  THE    MONGOLS   OR  TARTARS 

About  the  beginning  of  the  13th  century  there  arose  in  the 
interior  of  Asia  north  of  China  a  new  power  which  was 
destined  to  exert  a  profound  influence  upon  eastern  Chris- 
tianity for  centuries.  Under  the  leadership  of  Genghis 
Kahn  the  Mongols,  who  were  still  utterly  barbarous  heathen, 
conquered  all  of  northern  China  and  all  of  Hindoostan  to 
the  Caspian  Sea.  After  his  death  in  1227  his  successors 
carried  his  conquests  farther  to  the  south,  north  and  west. 
All  of  China  was  subdued  and  placed  under  a  Mongol 
dynasty,  which  soon  adopted  Buddhism  as  its  religion. 

One  section  of  them  turned  northward  into  Russia.  All 
the  southern  and  western  portions  were  overrun  about  1237, 
Kiev  and  Moscow  were  burned  and  the  country  subjected 
to  the  Mongol  or  Tartar  yoke  for  the  next  two  hundred 
and  fifty  years.  These  two  and  a  half  centuries  under 
the  heel  of  the  *'  Golden  Horde,"  as  the  Tartars  called 
themselves,  had  a  disastrous  effect  on  the  development  of 
the  life  and  religion  of  the  Russian  people  from  which  they 
have  not  yet  fully  recovered. 

From  Russia  this  division  of  the  Mongols  moved  west- 
ward through  Poland  into  eastern  Germany,  burning  and 
destroying  everything  in  their  path.  At  the  great  battle  of 
Liegnitz  their  advance  in  this  direction  was  stopped.  They 
then  turned  southward  into  Hungary  and  along  the  Danube, 
their  course  marked  by  the  smoldering  ruins  of  towns  and 

83 


84  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

churches  and  by  heaps  of  slain.  Laden  with  spoil  they 
finally  withdrew  to  Russia. 

But  if  the  suffering  of  the  Christians  was  great  that  of 
some  Mohammedans  was  no  less  so.  The  Empire  of  Persia 
and  the  Caliphate  of  Bagdad  were  overthrown  and  destroyed. 

The  Mongol  hordes  then  pressed  on  westward,  destroy- 
ing the  Turkish  power,  and  capturing  and  sacking  the  prin- 
cipal cities  of  Asia  almost  to  the  Mediterranean.  This 
group  finally  accepted  Mohammedanism  and  became  staunch 
supporters  of  its  persecuting  measures. 

The  unified  government  of  these  western  Mongols  now 
broke  up  and  for  a  time  their  power  waned.  But  about 
1400  another  irruption  of  these  people  took  place  under 
the  leadership  of  Tamerlane.  All  western  Asia  was  again 
devastated  almost  to  the  Mediterranean.  The  slaughter 
of  the  helpless  people  was  frightful,  sometimes  reaching  into 
the  tens  of  thousands  in  the  sack  of  one  city.  The  power 
of  these  Mongols  finally  came  to  an  end  in  western  Asia 
with  the  death  of  Tamerlane  in  1405,  but  Russia  continued 
to  suffer. 

§53 

FURTHER   ADVANCE   OF  THE   TURKS 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  last  period  the  empire  of  the 
Seljuk  Turks  had  fallen  into  disorder  and  was  on  the  point 
of  dissolution.  Its  complete  disintegration  was  hastened 
and  completed  by  the  invasion  of  the  Mongols  as  related 
above. 

But  upon  its  ruins  rose  another  Turkish  empire,  vaster 
and  more  powerful  than  the  Seljuks  had  ever  been.  This 
new  empire  was  founded  by  Othman  or  Ottoman  in  the 
heart  of  Asia  Minor  about  the  year  1300.  From  very  small 
beginnings  these  Ottoman  Turks,  as  they  are  called  from 
their  founder,  rapidly  enlarged  their  territory  by  conquests 
from  both  the  Christians  and  the  Mohammedans.  Within 
forty  years  they  had  destroyed  all  Christian  government 


EASTERN    CHRISTIANITY — I3OO  TO    I517  85 

in  Asia  and  in  1355  planted  foot  firmly  on  the  continent  of 
Europe  by  the  capture  and  fortifying  of  Gallipoli.  In  1361 
they  captured  Adrianople  and  made  it  their  capital.  In 
1402  they  received  a  severe  backset  v^hen  Tamerlane  de- 
feated them  at  the  great  battle  of  Ancyra  and  captured  their 
Sultan  Bajazet.  However  they  quickly  recovered  after 
his  death  and  the  whole  Balkan  peninsula  was  then  rapidly 
reduced.  On  May  29,  1453  Constantinople  itself  was  cap- 
tured and  made  the  capital  of  their  empire,  thus  bringing  to 
a  final  end  the  old  Roman  empire.  The  extinction  of  this 
ancient  Christian  empire  is  perhaps  the  greatest  tragedy 
that  has  ever  befallen  the  Christian  religion. 

In  the  meantime  the  Ottoman  Turks  had  been  extending 
their  conquests  eastward  and  southward  over  their  Mo- 
hammedan neighbors,  Turkish  and  Arabian,  till  at  the  end 
of  our  period  the  Ottoman  empire  stretched  from  the  Dan- 
ube to  the  cataracts  of  the  Nile  and  from  the  Euphrates  to 
the  middle  of  the  Mediterranean.  For  many  years  they 
had  been  seeking  to  force  the  passage  of  the  Danube  which 
was  defended  by  the  heroism  of  the  Hungarians,  and  early 
in  the  next  period  they  will,  under  the  leadership  of  Sulci- 
man  the  Magnificent  with  whose  reign  the  empire  attained 
its  widest  extent,  lay  siege  to  Vienna  the  capital  of  Austria 
itself. 

For  several  centuries  the  whole  of  the  Greek  Catholic 
church  with  the  exception  of  that  of  Russia  lay  helpless 
under  the  heel  of  "  the  unspeakable  Turk."  Under  them 
the  church  was  transformed  into  a  political  institution  whose 
chief  duty  was  to  serve  its  Turkish  masters  in  the  collection 
of  taxes  and  the  preservation  of  order.  The  Christians 
were  compelled  to  support  the  government,  to  pay  a  tithe  of 
their  sons  who  were  reared  as  Mohammedans  and  organ- 
ized into  the  famous  Janizaries,  the  first  standing  army 
of  Europe.  The  Patriarch  of  Constantinople  was  selected 
by  the  Turkish  government  and  the  bishops  and  lower  clergy 
were  practically  officers  of  the  Turkish  state.  The  church 
buildings,  many  of  the  most  beautiful  of  them,  were  taken 


86  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

as  mosques,  conversion  to  Christianity  was  forbidden  and 
in  general  the  whole  tone  and  spirit  of  Christianity  was 
fearfully  depressed.  Christian  worship  was  tolerated,  but 
its  effectiveness  and  power  were  nullified.  Selim  I  ob- 
tained from  Egypt  the  Caliphate  or  spiritual  headship  of 
all  Mohammedans  in  151 7,  since  which  date  the  Sultan 
has  been  both  the  political  and  spiritual  head  of  most  of 
the  Mohammedan  world.  The  tragedy  of  Turkish  power  in 
southeastern  Europe  was  at  its  height  at  the  end  of  our 
period.  All  Europe  was  trembling  before  what  seemed  to 
be  an  irresistible  and  ruthless  foe. 


§54 

CHRISTIANITY    IN    INTERIOR   ASIA 

Many  indications  lead  to  the  belief  that  Christians  were 
to  be  found  in  considerable  numbers  in  interior  Asia  in 
this  period.  They  were  mostly  Nestorians  and  if  Catholic 
writers  can  be  believed  they  were  active  but  lacking  in  the 
culture  and  character  necessary  to  a  successful  Christian 
propaganda.  The  widespread  rumor  that  an  extensive 
Christian  kingdom,  lying  to  the  north  of  China  and  ruled 
over  by  a  priest-king,  Prester  John,  seems  to  have  had 
no  foundation  in  fact.  It  was  so  far  believed,  however, 
that  the  pope  sent  an  embassage  to  the  interior  of  Asia  in 
search  of  this  supposedly  Christian  prince. 

But  a  century  later  when  the  Mongols  extended  their 
conquests  into  the  West  the  eyes  of  the  pope  were  again 
turned  to  the  Far  East.  From  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth 
century  missionaries  were  sent  to  eastern  Asia  in  the  hope 
of  making  some  impression  upon  the  barbaric  heathenism 
of  that  region.  These  missionaries,  and  travelers  like 
Marco  Polo,  found  the  Mongols  tolerant  of  all  religions,  the 
three  principal  ones  at  court  being  Buddhism,  Mohammedan- 
ism and  Nestorian  Christianity.  Catholic  missionaries 
finally  reached  the  court  of  the  great  Kahn  at  Pekin  in 


EASTERN    CHRISTIANITY —  I3OO  TO    I517  8/ 

1303.  They  were  hospitably  received  and  were  permitted 
to  erect  two  church  buildings,  one  of  them  very  near  the 
royal  palace  and  overtopping  it.  They  translated  the  Psalms 
and  the  New  Testament  into  the  Tartar  language  and  suc- 
ceeded in  baptizing  6000  converts  in  a  very  short  time.  All 
indications  pointed  to  a  successful  mission  for  these  Catho- 
lics, but  the  Mongols  were  overthrown  by  the  Ming  dynasty 
which  suppressed  Christianity  in  1368.  Many  scholars  be- 
lieve that  the  Buddhism  of  central  Asia  was  sensibly  af- 
fected by  this  somewhat  fleeting  presence  of  Christianity. 
But  in  the  providence  of  God  the  Far  East  remained  prac- 
tically closed  to  Christianity  till  Protestantism  was  able  to, 
take  up  mission  work  with  a  far  more  apostolic  type  of 
Christian  faith  than  the  Nestorians  or  the  Catholics  could 
have  carried  to  these  regions. 

§55 

CHRISTIANITY   IN   RUSSIA 

Russia  was  under  Mongol  domination  most  of  this  period. 
But  notwithstanding  the  stagnation  and  clog  upon  progress 
which  such  an  invasion  involved  the  Russian  church  made 
some  progress.  Most  of  the  tribes  in  the  frozen  north  such 
as  the  Laps  and  Finns  were  Christianized,  the  seat  of  the 
Metropolitan  or  head  of  the  Russian  church  was  removed 
from  Kiev  to  Moscow  in  1305  and  after  the  fall  of  Con- 
stantinople was  made  entirely  independent  of  the  patriarch 
of  that  city.  During  all  the  earlier  history  of  the  Russian 
church  its  head  had  been  appointed  by  this  patriarch  and 
naturally  had  been  a  Greek;  henceforth  the  Metropolitan 
was  elected  by  Russian  bishops  and  was  a  native  Russian, 
a  great  gain. 

Monasticism  had  a  remarkable  growth  and  became  the 
chief  religious  force  in  Russia.  The  buildings  were  enorm- 
ous fortified  outposts  of  civilization,  fitted  for  both  the 
defense  and  the  propagation  of  culture  and  religion.     They 


88  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

are  still  the  most  impressive  buildings  in  the  country,  and 
manifest  all  the  barbaric  splendor  of  that  great  people. 
Russian  monasticism  does  not  show  that  great  variety  which 
we  see  in  the  West.  All  live  under  the  same  rule,  that  of 
St.  Basil,  and  the  ideal  of  service  which  is  found  among 
the  western  friars  is  not  so  manifest.  Their  aim  is  the 
cultivation  of  the  contemplative  life.  Bishops  must  be  un- 
married men,  hence  all  bishops  come  from  the  monasteries. 
On  the  other  hand  all  priests  must  be  married,  hence  no 
parish  priest  ever  becomes  a  bishop. 

Repeated  efforts  were  made  by  the  pope  to  bring  about 
a  union  of  the  whole  Greek  church  with  the  Roman  church. 
The  effort  met  with  very  little  success  in  Russia  or  else- 
where except  on  paper.  The  culture  and  the  religious  direc- 
tion and  inspiration  of  Russia  came  from  Constantinople. 
Ivan  III  (1462-1505),  who  was  the  first  really  great  ruler 
of  Russia,  married  the  daughter  of  the  Greek  emperor  and 
used  all  available  means  to  induce  scholars  to  lend  their 
services  to  Russia.  Constantinople  had  just  fallen,  and 
Ivan  appropriated  the  double-headed  eagle  of  the  empire 
and  called  himself  Czar,  thus  indicating  his  feeling  that 
Russia  was  for  the  future  to  be  the  successor  of  the  Byzan- 
tine empire.  Our  period  closes  with  the  country  on  the 
eve  of  its  period  of  great  expansion. 


B.     WESTERN  CHRISTIANITY 
§56 

GENERAL   CONDITIONS 

In  the  West  the  history  of  this  period  was  marked  by  no 
such  great  movements  of  the  peoples  as  we  have  observed 
in  earlier  periods  and  in  the  East  in  this  period.  Racial 
and  political  conditions  were  fairly  stable.  The  most  no- 
table events  were  the  long  and  successful  struggle  of  the 
Christians   against   the   Mohammedans   in   Spain,   and   the 


WESTERN    CHRISTIANITY —  I30O   TO    I517  89 

Hundred  Years  War  between  England  and  France.  The 
Christian  population  of  Spain  gradually  pressed  the  Mo- 
hammedan Moors  back  southward  toward  Africa  from 
which  they  had  originally  come.  The  Christians  organized 
themselves  into  small  kingdoms  as  they  freed  themselves 
from  their  Mohammedan  masters  —  Leon,  Castile,  Navarre, 
Aragon,  Portugal.  Together  they  forced  the  Moors  into  a 
small  section  of  southern  Spain  around  Grenada  and  then 
finally  in  1492  destroyed  the  last  remnant  of  Mohammedan 
political  power.  Thenceforth  the  Christians  ruled  over  all 
the  Spanish  peninsula,  though  the  Moors  were  permitted 
to  retain  their  homes  for  more  than  a  century  longer.  In 
the  meantime  the  Christians  had  gradually  united  their  own 
governments  until  there  were  but  two  kingdoms  at  the 
end  of  the  period  —  Spain  and  Portugal,  and  these  have  re- 
mained to  the  present  time. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  the  Duke  of  Normandy,  a 
district  of  France,  conquered  England  in  1066  without  giv- 
ing up  his  land  in  France.  Thus  a  large  section  of  France 
was  attached  to  the  crown  of  England.  By  marriage  and 
conquest  these  holdings  were  enlarged  until  the  king  of 
England  actually  held  almost  half  the  territory  of  modem 
France  and  ultimately  laid  claim  to  the  crown  itself.  These 
conditions  led  to  almost  continuous  wars  for  more  than  a 
hundred  years.  When  the  French  were  near  despair  they 
were  once  more  heartened  for  the  struggle  by  a  peasant 
girl  known  as  Joan  of  Arc  or  the  Maid  of  Orleans.  This 
girl  believed  herself  called  of  heaven  to  deliver  her  coun- 
try from  the  hated  English  invaders.  Her  enthusiasm  and 
visions  enlisted  the  support  of  the  nation  and  the  tide  of 
English  success  was  turned.  In  1429  she  fell  into  the  hands 
of  the  English  by  whom  she  was  convicted  of  heresy  and 
burned  at  the  stake.  But  her  work  was  done.  The  Eng- 
lish gradually  lost  ground  and  at  the  end  of  the  period  held 
only  the  city  of  Calais. 


90  THE    COURSE    OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

§57 

DECAY   OF   FEUDALISM    AND   THE   RISE   OF   CITIES 

One  of  the  most  marked  characteristics  of  the  social 
changes  of  this  period  was  the  decay  of  the  whole  feudal 
system.  The  great  nobles  who  had  been  so  powerful  in  the 
preceding  period  as  to  overawe  kings  and  peoples  lose  most 
of  their  power  in  this.  The  ruins  of  the  mighty  castles 
which  make  the  landscape  of  England,  France  and  Germany 
so  picturesque  in  certain  sections,  are  eloquent  memorials  of 
the  predominant  position  which  the  nobility  once  held. 
These  "  Robber  Barons "  succumbed  to  the  growing  in- 
fluence of  the  cities  and  the  kings.  As  commerce  and 
manufacturing  rose  the  cities  grew  into  powerful  social 
units,  able  to  defend  themselves  and  their  rights  against 
nobles  and  kings  and  constituting  the  beginnings  of  modern 
democracy.  They  organized  leagues,  such  as  the  Hanseatic 
League  of  northern  Germany,  for  the  defense  of  their 
rights  and  the  extension  of  their  trade,  maintaining  fleets 
and  armies  for  the  enforcement  of  their  will. 

At  the  other  end  of  the  social  scale  the  king  was  also 
rapidly  growing  in  power.  The  nations  were  unified  and 
consolidated,  and  the  people  began  to  be  represented  in 
parliaments.  Between  the  king  and  the  rising  cities  the 
nobility  rapidly  sank  into  impotence,  leaving  room  for 
a  rising  democracy  in  the  state,  in  culture,  religion  and  all 
the  other  departments  of  social  life. 

§58 

THE   DECLINE   OF   THE   PAPACY 

We  have  already  seen  that  the  papacy  reached  the  zenith 
of  its  power  and  glory  in  the  preceding  period.  From  this 
dizzy  height  it  plunged  almost  immediately  into  a  slough 
of  humiliation  and  division  that  robbed  it  of  its  influence 


WESTERN    CHRISTIANITY — 130O  TO    I517  91 

and  made  it  a  stench  in  the  nostrils  of  Europe.  In  1305 
the  cardinals  elected  a  Frenchman  as  pope.  He  did  not  go 
to  Rome  at  all,  but  set  up  another  papal  court  at  Avignon  on 
the  lower  Rhone.  Here  he  and  his  successors,  all  of  them 
Frenchmen,  for  seventy  years  were  virtually  the  vassals  of 
France  whose  interests  they  served.  So  notorious  did  the 
conditions  become  that  Catholic  historians  have  stigma- 
tized this  period  as  the  "  Babylonian  Captivity  of  the 
Papacy." 

In  1378  the  cardinals  were  induced  to  elect  an  Italian  at 
Rome  so  that  the  eternal  city  might  again  become  the 
center  of  Catholic  life.  But  the  new  pope,  Urban  VI,  soon 
alienated  the  French  cardinals  by  his  rough  behavior,  and 
they  proceeded  to  elect  another  pope,  declaring  that  their 
former  election  was  null  and  void  because  they  had  been 
coerced  into  the  election  of  Urban.  They  chose  a  French- 
man who  took  the  name  of  Clement  VII  and  returned  to 
Avignon,  thus  creating  the  most  serious  schism  that  the 
Catholic  church  ever  had.  Each  of  the  popes,  supported 
by  a  college  of  cardinals,  declared  himself  to  be  the  only 
legitimate  pope,  assumed  to  exercise  all  papal  power  and 
anathematized  his  opponent  as  the  child  of  the  devil  and  the 
devourer  of  the  church.  This  unholy  spectacle  continued 
for  nearly  forty  years.  In  1309  at  the  Council  of  Pisa  the 
cardinals  voted  to  depose  both  the  contending  popes  and 
elected  another.  But  the  popes  declined  to  be  deposed  and 
the  world  had  the  delectable  spectacle  of  seeing  three  men, 
each  declaring  himself  the  vicar  of  Christ  and  the  infallible 
shepherd  of  the  whole  church,  deluging  the  others  with  ec- 
clesiastical vituperation  and  abuse.  Finally  by  means  of 
the  ecumenical  council  of  Constance  and  death  all  anti-popes 
were  put  out  of  the  way  and  the  unity  of  the  church  was 
restored.  The  last  of  the  anti-popes  died  in  1349  and 
since  then  the  Catholic  church  has  never  been  afflicted  by  a 
schism. 

But  toward  the  end  of  the  period  several  very  unworthy 
men  sat  on  the  papal  chair.     Alexander  VI   (1492-1503), 


92  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

was  a  moral  monster ;  Julius  II  was  more  of  a  warrior  than 
a  shepherd  and  Leo  X  was  destitute  of  all  knowledge  of 
religion.  The  papacy,  that  institution  that  had  once  domin- 
ated kings  and  emperors  and  had  seemed  invincible  under 
Innocent  III,  was  now  fallen  and  degraded.  Princes  and 
even  Luther  the  monk  of  Wittenberg  might  defy  it  with 
impunity. 

§59 

THE  DECAY   OF   MISSIONS 

Missionary  activity  in  the  Roman  church  practically  ceased 
in  this  period.  This  strange  cessation  was  due  to  a  variety 
of  causes.  In  the  first  place  the  Christianizing  of  Europe, 
which  had  long  been  the  sole  field  of  missionary  endeavor 
for  the  Catholic  church,  was  nominally  finished,  All  Eu- 
rope was  inside  the  church.  In  the  second  place  the  Greek 
Catholic  church  and  the  Mohammedans  interposed  an  effec- 
tive barrier  between  the  Roman  Catholics  and  western  Asia 
and  northern  Africa,  the  only  portions  of  the  world  ac- 
cessible by  land.  In  the  third  place  the  Atlantic  ocean, 
screening  all  that  new  world  of  strange  savage  peoples,  was 
still  an  unknown  and  untraversed  waste  of  waters  sup- 
posed to  be  peopled  with  the  most  frightful  monsters. 
And  finally  the  Catholic  church  itself  was  in  such  a  condi- 
tion of  stagnation  and  decline  that  it  had  little  spiritual  life 
seeking  an  outlet  in  missionary  endeavor.  The  church  made 
repeated  attempts  to  accomplish  a  union  with  the  Greek 
church,  but  with  insignificant  results.  Missions  tc  the  Mo- 
hammedans were  out  of  the  question  on  account  of  the  bit- 
terness of  feeling  on  both  sides. 

§60 

THE   JEWS    IN    CHRISTIAN    LANDS 

As  we  have  seen  the  Jews  were  the  chief  instigators  of 
persecution  against  the  Christians  in  the  earlier  centuries  of 


WESTERN    CHRISTIANITY —  I30C   TO    I517  93 

Christian  history.  But  as  the  nations  became  Christian 
the  tables  were  turned  and  the  Jews  received  double  for 
all  the  suffering  they  had  inflicted  on  the  Christians.  Most 
of  the  cities  of  the  Roman  empire  had  some  Jewish  popula- 
tion at  the  beginning  of  the  Christian  era.  As  a  result  of 
the  struggles  with  the  empire  in  a.  d.  70  and  a.  d.  135  the 
national  life  of  the  Jews  was  completely  destroyed  and  they 
were  scattered  to  the  four  winds  of  the  earth.  Henceforth 
they  wandered  wherever  life  seemed  most  tolerable  and  the 
prospects  for  wealth  brightest,  bound  together  only  by  racial, 
religious  and  social  bonds.  With  the  spread  of  culture 
northward  from  the  Mediterranean  lands  they  wandered 
into  Germany,  France,  England  and  other  countries  of 
northern  Europe.  Here  they  settled  as  tradespeople, 
money-lenders  and  retail  merchants  in  the  cities  as  they 
grew  up.  Everywhere  they  were  hated  and  despised,  and 
very  often  they  were  inhumanly  treated.  They  were  usually 
confined  to  one  specific  section  of  the  city,  were  often  com- 
pelled to  wear  some  distinctive  dress  and  were  heavily 
taxed.  Periodically  furious  persecutions  would  break  over 
them  when  they  were  mobbed  and  murdered  with  impunity, 
and  sometimes  entirely  banished  by  the  government.  Their 
sufferings  were  great  in  all  Christian  lands,  the  Turks  and 
other  Mohammedans  usually  being  more  tolerant  of  the 
Jews  than  the  Christians  were. 

The  reasons  for  this  cruel  treatment  were  various.  The 
religious  motive  was  probably  the  predominant  one.  The 
Christians  hated  the  Jews  as  the  murderers  of  Jesus  their 
Lord,  as  the  instigators  of  persecution  in  the  early  days 
and  as  the  despisers  of  the  Christ  and  the  Christian  religion. 
There  can  be  no  question  that  the  Jews,  despising  the  su- 
perstitions of  Catholic  faith  and  worship,  often  made  them- 
selves very  obnoxious  to  Catholic  feeling. 

Added  to  the  religious  motive  was  the  resentment  aroused 
by  the  haughty  pride  and  the  economic  success  of  the  Jews. 
True  to  the  instincts  of  their  race  they  were  always  hard 
and  ruthless  where  gain  was  involved.     Owing  to  the  sen- 


94  THE    COURSE    OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

timent  among  Christians  that  one  Christian  should  not  lend 
money  at  interest  to  another,  the  whole  business  of  money- 
lending  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Jews  in  most  countries 
of  Europe.  The  business  was  precarious  if  not  illegal  in 
the  Middle  Ages,  and  as  a  consequence  the  Jews  charged 
very  high  rates  of  interest,  usually  40%  or  more,  to  cover 
the  risk.  Not  infrequently  whole  cities,  distinguished  nobles 
and  even  kings  were  at  the  mercy  of  the  Jewish  money-lend- 
ers. With  this  power  came  an  unbearable  haughtiness  and 
egotism  that  was  most  exasperating. 

Still  further  it  was  popularly  believed  that  the  Jews  were 
accustomed  now  and  then  to  murder  Christian  children  for 
ritualistic  purposes.  There  are  on  record  numerous  cases 
where  the  disappearance  of  Christian  children  was  confi- 
dently charged  to  the  murderous  hatred  of  the  Jews.  Such 
an  instance  always  caused  an  outbreak  of  frenzied  persecu- 
tion. These  charges  are  probably  entirely  without  founda- 
tion in  fact,  still  they  were  confidently  believed  and  added 
much  to  the  accumulated  hatred  of  the  Jew. 

Under  these  conditions  Christian  work  among  the  Jews 
was  practically  hopeless  and  was  rarely  attempted.  Neither 
Jew  nor  Christian  was  in  a  mood  for  mission  work.  Here 
and  there  Jews  were  forced  to  accept  baptism  on  pain  of 
death.  Many  died  rather  than  submit  and  those  who  sub- 
mitted scarcely  ever  became  genuine  Christians.  Occa- 
sionally a  Christian  of  purer  spirit  and  wider  vision  arose 
and  made  some  attempt  to  present  to  these  people  the  Christ. 
The  most  notable  of  these,  perhaps,  was  Vincent  Ferrer 
( 1 350-1419),  a  distinguished  Spanish  Dominican  scholar 
and  ecclesiastic,  who  spent  the  last  twenty  years  of  his 
life  in  popular  preaching  in  Spain  and  France.  Of  his 
wonderful  power  as  a  speaker  there  can  be  no  doubt,  and 
the  lowest  estimate  of  the  number  of  converts  from  Judaism 
due  to  his  work  is  twenty  thousand.  This  is  sufficient  to 
show  that  other  conditions  might  have  produced  numerous 
converts  from  these  people  who  had  lived  among  Christians 
but  to  suffer  at  their  hands  or  fatten  off  their  weaknesses. 


WESTERN   CHRISTIANITY — I3OO  TO    I517  95 

§61 

A    NEW    SPIRIT    IN   THE    WORLD 

About  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century  a  new  spirit  of 
personal  independence,  initiative  and  enterprise  began  to 
manifest  itself  in  the  European  world.  It  was  the  begin- 
ning of  the  individualism  which  has  been  such  a  marked 
feature  of  the  life  of  the  latest  centuries.  Throughout  the 
Middle  Ages  the  two  great  institutions  of  society,  the 
Church  and  the  State,  had  completely  dominated  the  in- 
dividual, depriving  him  of  his  independence  and  signifi- 
cance. This  new  spirit  asserted  the  significance  of  the  in- 
dividual as  over  against  the  institution  and  thus  brought 
about  the  great  intellectual,  social  and  religious  revolution 
known  as  the  Renaissance  and  the  Reformation.  Some  of 
the  more  striking  manifestations  of  this  new  spirit  will 
now  be  considered. 

1.  Beginning  near  the  end  of  the  fourteenth  century  there 
arose  a  new  education.  It  started  with  the  renewal  of  the 
study  of  the  Greek  language,  literature  and  philosophy  in 
Italy.  Greek  had  once  been  well  known  in  southern  Italy 
and  slightly  in  other  Latin  lands,  but  this  knowledge  had 
long  since  died  out.  A  few  Greeks  from  the  East  now 
began  its  revival.  The  awakening  effects  of  the  study  were 
marvelous.  A  new  world  of  thought  and  interest  were 
opened  up  to  the  West,  a  new  intellectual  activity  resulted. 
Students  from  other  lands,  hearing  of  the  ferment  in  Italy, 
poured  over  the  Alps  to  drink  at  these  fresh  and  newly 
opened  fountains.  Along  with  the  Greek  came  the  revival 
of  interest  in  classic  Latin.  The  new  studies  were  rapidly 
transplanted  into  France,  Germany  and  England  and  soon 
became  an  important  part  of  the  curricula  of  all  universi- 
ties and  other  schools  of  higher  learning.  The  intellectual 
quickening  which  accompanied  this  reform  in  education  can 
hardly  be  estimated  at  this  distance. 

2.  Along  with  the  new  education  came  a  critical  spirit. 


96  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

Throughout  the  Middle  Ages  the  individual  had  accepted 
whatever  the  state  or  the  church  gave  him  with  little  ques- 
tion. It  was  the  "  age  of  faith."  The  most  unreasonable 
stories  of  saints,  miracles,  visions,  etc.,  were  accepted  on 
authority  without  a  thought  of  investigation  or  question. 
It  was  the  atmosphere  in  which  superstition  flourishes,  the 
atmosphere  which  was  fostered  by  the  Catholic  church. 
The  new  spirit  demanded  a  reason,  asserted  the  right  of 
the  individual  to  question,  to  criticize,  to  judge  for  himself, 
to  know.  No  more  beneficent  change  ever  came  over  the 
human  spirit.  Before  this  critical  spirit  the  hoary  super- 
stitions and  abuses  which  the  "  age  of  faith  "  had  accumu- 
lated were  destined  to  crumble,  ushering  in  the  modern 
world. 

3.  Renewed  interest  in  the  Bible  was  one  of  the  striking 
manifestations  of  this  new  spirit.  The  Catholic  church  had 
done  its  work  with  meager  use  of  the  Bible.  It  remained 
in  the  Latin  language,  a  sealed  book  to  the  unlearned.  No 
efforts  had  been  made  to  put  it  into  the  hands  of  the  people 
or  induce  them  to  make  use  of  it.  On  the  contrary  the 
church  opposed  its  use  by  the  laity.  The  new  learning  at 
once  turned  to  this  book.  The  first  book  that  was  ever 
printed  was  the  Bible  in  the  Latin  language  in  1455  ;  in  1488 
the  Hebrew  Old  Testament  was  printed,  and  in  15 16  the 
Greek  New  Testament. 

More  important  for  the  people  than  this  printing  of  the 
originals  was  the  renewal  of  the  work  of  translating  the 
Scriptures  into  the  languages  of  the  peoples.  In  England 
John  Wycliffe  finished  a  translation  of  the  entire  Bible  be- 
fore his  death  in  1384,  and  it  was  widely  circulated  in  manu- 
script. In  France,  Spain,  Germany  and  other  countries 
numerous  translations  of  the  Bible  or  parts  of  the  Bible 
were  made  and  diligently  circulated  in  this  period.  But  the 
Catholic  church  was  usually  hostile  to  this  work  and  exerted 
its  utmost  efforts  to  suppress  the  Book  for  which  the  peo- 
ple were  crying.     The  work  of  translating  was  done  by 


WESTERN   CHRISTIANITY — I3OO  TO    I517  97 

the  heretics  or  by  Catholics  who  were  out  of   harmony 
with  their  church. 

Moreover  the  use  of  the  Bible  in  the  original  languages 
began  to  find  place  in  the  class-rooms  of  the  universities, 
as  a  substitute  for  the  "  Sentences  "  of  the  fathers  and 
extracts  from  Aristotle,  in  the  study  of  theology.  Bible 
picture  books,  Bible  stories  and  similar  means  popularized 
Bible  knowledge. 

4.  Inventions  and  discoveries  constitute  the  most  striking 
feature  of  this  revival  of  the  human  spirit.  The  art  of 
printing  was  invented  about  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  cen- 
tury, the  first  printed  book  appearing  in  the  year  1455.  The 
use  of  the  mariner's  compass  and  of  gunpowder  in  the  West 
begin  in  this  same  century  though  they  seem  to  have  been 
in  use  in  the  Far  East  at  an  earlier  date.  Without  these 
three  inventions  the  modern  world  would  have  been  im- 
possible. 

With  the  compass  men  began  to  venture  out  into  the  un- 
charted waters  of  the  Atlantic.  In  1492  Columbus,  on  his 
way  to  India  as  he  supposed  by  a  sea  route,  discovered 
America.  In  1498  a  sea-route  to  India  was  discovered  by 
sailing  around  Africa,  and  in  1522  Magellan  completed  a 
voyage  around  the  world.  It  is  now  impossible  to  realize  the 
limitations  of  the  knowledge  which  men  had  possessed  of 
the  world  in  which  they  lived  or  the  tremendous  shock  which 
these  discoveries  gave  to  the  world's  thinking.  It  was  as  if 
all  the  foundations  of  thought  had  been  shaken;  it  opened 
the  way  for  changes  in  the  realm  of  religion. 

5.  A  worthy  vernacular  literature  begins  to  rise  in  this 
period.  During  the  earlier  periods  all  the  Hterature  that 
was  produced  in  western  Europe  had  been  in  the  Latin 
language.  The  masses  were  not  educated  and  hence  ap- 
peal to  them  through  books  was  impossible.  The  begin- 
nings of  this  vernacular  literature  signify  that  the  people 
are  beginning  to  think  and  that  they  are  coming  to  be  re- 
garded by  literary  men  as  worthy  of  consideration.     By 


98  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

the  time  the  Reformation  broke  over  the  world  it  was 
possible  to  reach  a  very  wide  public  through  the  printed 
page.  As  culture  spread  among  the  masses  they  began  to 
awake  from  abject  subservience  and  demand  some  consid- 
eration for  themselves.  In  Italy  the  great  names  were  Dante 
( 1 265-1 321),  Petrarch  (1304-74)  and  Boccaccio  ( 1313-75) » 
and  in  England  that  of  Chaucer  (1340-1400).  These 
names  have  lived  and  will  continue  to  live  in  the  world's 
literature.  But  there  were  many  other  lesser  lights  in 
these  countries  and  also  in  Germany  and  France.  This  new 
literature  was  not  for  the  princes  or  the  prelates  but  for  the 
people,  the  common  man.  Moreover  the  very  earliest  of 
this  literature  is  critical  of  the  church.  Dante  does  not 
hesitate  to  put  some  of  the  popes  in  hell,  and  other  writers 
were  scarcely  less  drastic  in  their  criticisms.  It  was  shock- 
ing, for  the  church  had  been  exempt  from  criticism  for 
centuries. 

6.  Another  manifestation  of  the  new  power  that  was 
in  the  world  was  in  the  realm  of  Christian  art.  In  the  pre- 
ceding period  the  church  had  erected  magnificent  buildings 
to  the  glory  of  God  and  the  purposes  of  worship.  In  this 
the  art  of  painting  is  put  to  the  same  service  and  is  won- 
derfully developed.  Again  it  was  Italy  that  led  the  way. 
The  greatest  paintings  were  altar  pieces  used  to  stimulate 
the  devotion  of  worshippers.  They  were  based  on  biblical 
history,  Catholic  beliefs  and  legends  of  saints.  The  Virgin 
and  the  child  Jesus  were  the  most  common  subjects,  and  in 
the  portrayal  of  the  Catholic  beliefs  that  gather  about  the 
manger  at  Bethlehem  Christian  art  probably  reached  its 
highest  attainments.  Some  of  the  names  that  made  Italian 
art  famous  were  Giotto  d.  1336,  Fra  Angelico  d.  1455, 
Leonardo  da  Vinci  d.  15 19,  Raphael  d.  1520  and  Michael 
Angelo  d.  1564.  Christian  art  has  never  surpassed  the 
work  done  by  these  men  and  it  was  all  or  nearly  all  in  the 
service  of  the  Catholic  church.  It  was  a  wonderful  mani- 
festation of  the  new  power  that  was  so  soon  to  transform 
the  world  in  so  many  respects. 


WESTERN    CHRISTIANITY I3OO   TO    I517  99 

From  the  specifications  above  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
middle  of  the  fifteenth  century  really  ushers  in  a  new  age. 
It  was  a  Renaissance,  a  rebirth  of  the  world,  as  it  has 
been  aptly  called.  The  new  intellectual  movement  has  also 
been  called  Humanism  because  it  was  a  new  emphasis  on 
humanity  apart  from  the  purely  ecclesiastical  aspects  of 
life. 

REFORMATORY    MOVEMENTS 

The  new  spirit  which  was  abroad  in  the  world  was  bound 
to  break  out  into  efforts  at  the  reform  of  the  church  *'  in 
head  and  members,"  to  use  a  phrase  that  was  common  in 
those  days.  The  most  notable  of  these  movements  were 
in  England  and  Bohemia.  The  subjection  of  the  papacy 
to  France  during  the  "  Babylonian  Captivity  "  had  alienated 
the  sympathies  of  England  and  led  to  drastic  efforts  to 
curb  papal  power  in  that  country.  The  literary  leader  of 
the  country  in  these  efforts  was  John  WycHffe  (1320-84), 
a  highly  educated  man,  a  professor  in  Oxford  and  a  priest 
in  the  Catholic  church.  His  opposition  to  the  political 
pretensions  of  the  papacy  gradually  led  him  to  reject  the 
whole  religious  system  of  the  church  —  its  doctrines,  prac- 
tices and  organization.  In  addition  to  numerous  anti-Cath- 
olic writings  he  translated  the  entire  Bible  into  English 
and  organized  a  body  of  men  known  as  Lollards  to  cir- 
culate the  Scriptures  and  preach  evangelical  doctrines. 
They  made  a  powerful  impression  on  the  country  and  were 
never  entirely  suppressed  till  they  were  absorbed  in  the 
larger  movement  of  the  Reformation.  Wycliffe  is  known 
as  "  the  morning  star  of  the  Reformation,"  and  his  work 
undoubtedly  prepared  the  way  in  England  for  the  move- 
ment which  ultimately  put  that  country  entirely  outside  the 
Catholic  church.  Both  church  and  state  did  what  they 
could  to  suppress  the  movement,  and  Wycliffe's  bones  were 
dug  up  and  burned  in  1429  at  the  command  of  the  Council 


100  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

of  Constance;  but  the  seed  was  sown  and  the  crop  would 
mature  in  due  time. 

From  England  Wycliffe's  writings  were  carried  by  stu- 
dents and  others  to  Bohemia  and  there  found  enthusiastic 
acceptance  in  the  University  of  Prague,  especially  in  the 
persons  of  two  professors,  John  Hus  and  Jerome.  Hus  was 
a  great  popular  preacher,  the  rector  of  the  university  and  a 
sort  of  national  hero.  He  was,  however,  finally  forced  out 
of  the  university,  condemned  as  a  heretic  at  the  Council  of 
Constance  in  141 5  and  burned  at  the  stake.  The  next  year 
the  same  treatment  was  meted  out  to  Jerome,  but  this  cruelty 
seemed  for  a  time  only  to  fan  the  flames  of  revolt  from  the 
Catholic  church.  The  whole  of  Bohemia  appeared  to  be  on 
the  eve  of  leaving  the  church.  A  crusade  was  finally 
preached  against  the  reformers,  their  forces  were  cunningly 
divided  so  that  they  were  defeated  and  their  organization 
destroyed.  A  remnant  of  them  survived  and  ultimately 
were  able  to  organize  another  evangelical  sect  which  has, 
however,  exerted  very  little  influence  on  the  world.  This 
great  and  promising  movement  of  reform  was  thus  strangled 
in  blood.  Doubtless  some  of  its  seeds  still  remain  in  the 
soil  and  may  yet  produce  a  rich  spiritual  harvest.  Hus  is  a 
national  hero,  and  his  name  must  be  reckoned  with. 

Reformers  appeared  at  various  places  in  Holland,  and  the 
famous  Dominican  monk,  Savonarola,  attempted  the  reform 
of  Florence,  the  gay  capital  of  Umbria.  He  was  burned 
at  the  stake  as  a  heretic  in  1498,  but  he  is  now  one  of  the 
heroes  of  this  wonderful  city. 

The  above  is  sufficient  to  indicate  something  of  the  mighty 
ferment  that  was  now  working  in  the  world.  What  was 
the  Catholic  church  doing  to  meet  it?  In  a  word  it  was 
doing  nothing.  Since  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century 
the  popes  had  been  patrons  of  the  new  learning  and  had 
vied  with  princes  in  the  support  of  artists  and  literary  men ; 
but  they  had  not  responded  to  the  demand  for  religious 
reform  or  for  increased  freedom  among  the  people.  The 
church  was  more  corrupt  than  it  had  been  for  centuries, 


WESTERN   CHRISTIANITY — I3OO  TO    I517  lOI 

it  was  absolutely  intolerant  of  dissent  and  ready  to  resort 
to  the  most  cruel  tortures  to  maintain  its  position  of  mastery. 
The  monastic  orders  were  decayed,  the  clergy  were  ignorant, 
indifferent  to  the  needs  of  the  people,  greedy  of  gain,  liv- 
ing in  ease  and  luxury.  The  Bible  was  not  circulated,  the 
people  were  not  taught,  superstition  was  not  opposed  but 
rather  fostered.  In  a  word  the  world  was  in  deep  need  and 
the  church  was  not  ready  or  willing  to  help. 


SEVENTH  PERIOD  —  THE  REFORMATION  — 
1517  TO  1648 

§63 

A   SURVEY   OF  THE   CHRISTIAN   WORLD 

We  come  now  to  study  the  most  tremendous  upheaval  that 
the  Christian  world  has  ever  experienced.  Before  begin- 
ning the  study  of  the  details  it  will  be  well  to  make  a  brief 
survey  of  the  Christian  world  as  a  whole.  Looking  about 
us  at  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century  we  observe 
that  Christianity  is  divided  into  two  large  and  several 
smaller  groups. 

1.  The  Greek  Catholic  or  Holy  Orthodox  Eastern 
Church,  situated  in  eastern  Europe  and  western  Asia  com- 
posed principally  of  Greeks  and  Slavs,  is  organized  into 
several  distinct  national  churches  of  which  the  Russian  is 
the  most  important.  Nearly  half  of  this  church's  territory 
is  under  the  dominion  of  the  Mohammedan  Turks,  and  Rus- 
sia has  just  been  freed  from  the  oppression  of  the  Moham- 
medan Mongols.  This  church  is  religiously  and  intellectu- 
ally stagnant,  the  renaissance  of  culture  has  not  aflfected  it 
in  the  least.  It  is  fighting  for  its  existence  with  barbarism, 
Mohammedanism  and  internal  stagnation. 

2.  The  Roman  Catholic  Chiirch,  covering  western  Eu- 
rope and  composed  mainly  of  Latins  and  Teutons,  is  or- 
ganized under  one  powerful  head.  It  exercises  political 
control  over  central  Italy,  and  many  of  its  bishops  are 
princes  of  the  realm  in  other  lands.  Many  evangelical 
and  hostile  sects  exist  within  its  bounds,  notwithstanding  its 
vigorous  and  cruel  persecutions,  and  they  afford  a  leaven 
of  purer  religious  life  that  will  materially  help  the  Reforma- 

102 


THE    REFORMATION  IO3 

tion.  Moreover  there  is  within  the  church  itself  a  ferment 
of  intellectual  activity,  independent  and  even  hostile  to  the 
church,  which  is  transforming  the  thinking  and  intellectual 
atmosphere  of  the  entire  western  world.  The  mental  and 
spiritual  stagnation  of  the  East  is  not  shared  by  the  West. 

3.  The  Evangelical  sects  of  Europe  mentioned  above, 
found  mainly  among  the  Germanic  peoples. 

4.  The  old  heretical  churches  of  the  East  are  still  in  exist- 
ence but  they  too  are  under  the  heel  of  the  Turk  and  capable 
of  very  small  service  in  the  future  history  of  mankind. 
These  are  the  Jacobite  and  Nestorian  churches  of  Armenia 
and  Persia,  Syria,  Egypt  and  Abyssinia.  They  remain 
uninfluenced  by  the  Reformation  as  does  the  Greek  church. 

§64 

THE   ROMAN    CATHOLIC    CHURCH 

The  Reformation  was  wholly  in  the  bosom  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  church,  and  in  order  better  to  understand  that 
movement  it  will  be  well  to  get  a  clear  idea  of  the  church 
as  it  was  at  the  beginning  of  the  revolution  that  tore  so 
many  of  its  children  away  from  its  fellowship. 

1.  As  a  system  of  government  it  was  a  reproduction  of 
the  old  Roman  empire  —  the  pope  for  the  emperor,  the 
college  of  cardinals  for  the  old  senate  and  curia,  the  arch- 
bishops, bishops,  legates,  etc.,  for  the  various  officers  of 
the  old  empire.  Like  the  empire  it  was  international, 
holding  various  races  under  the  sway  of  one  system  of  law 
and  one  system  of  executive  government;  but  its  authority 
was  much  more  autocratic  than  the  Roman  government  had 
ever  been.  Its  political  power  had  declined  very  materially 
in  the  last  three  centuries,  but  was  still  considerable. 

2.  Its  plan  of  salvation  was  sacramental.  It  claimed  that 
the  church  is  the  divinely  appointed  and  sole  agency  for 
the  salvation  of  men,  all  of  whom  are  born  in  sin  and  under 
eternal  condemnation.     The  chief  and  necessary  instruments 


104  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

used  by  the  church  are  the  seven  sacraments,  all  of  which 
are  said  to  have  been  instituted  by  Christ.  They  are,  in 
their  logical  order.  Baptism,  Confirmation,  Eucharist, 
Penance  —  Marriage  and  Ordination  —  Extreme  Unction. 
The  first  four  and  the  last  are  for  all  Catholics.  The  other 
two  exclude  each  other. 

Baptism  is  the  sacrament  of  regeneration  without  which 
no  one  can  be  saved.  It  may  be  administered  by  any  one  — 
priest,  layman  or  woman  —  and  may  be  by  immersion,  pour- 
ing or  sprinkling,  but  it  must  be  in  the  name  of  the  trinity. 
Faith  in  the  recipient  is  not  necessary,  and  hence  it  is  to  be 
administered  to  infants  who  would  be  lost  if  they  should 
die  unbaptized.  It  removes  all  guilt  and  punishment  due 
to  previous  sin,  both  original  and  actual. 

Confirmation  must  follow  baptism,  which  it  supplements 
and  completes.  It  is  administered  with  the  imposition  of 
the  hands  by  a  bishop,  and  it  is  believed  to  confirm  the  pres- 
ence and  effects  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  It  follows  a  period  of 
careful  catechetical  instruction. 

The  Eucharist  is  the  receiving  of  the  host  or  consecrated 
bread.  It  can  be  administered  by  a  priest  only.  This  host 
is  in  the  form  of  a  wafer  which  is  placed  upon  the  tongue  by 
the  priest ;  it  is  believed  to  be  the  body,  blood,  soul  and 
divinity  of  Jesus  Christ,  no  longer  bread  at  all,  and  hence 
must  not  be  chewed  or  taken  from  the  mouth  on  pain  of 
committing  a  mortal  sin.  The  wine  or  cup  is  not  served 
to  the  laity.  This  sacrament  is  the  medicine  of  immortality 
and  greatly  blesses  and  strengthens  the  soul. 

Penance  is  the  sacrament  by  which  the  guilt  and  the 
eternal  punishment  due  to  a  mortal  sin  committed  after 
baptism  are  removed,  leaving  only  the  temporal  punishment 
still  to  be  inflicted  either  in  this  life  or  in  purgatory.  It 
consists  of  sorrow  for  and  confession  of  the  sin  to  a  priest, 
absolution  or  the  forgiveness  of  the  sin  by  a  priest,  and 
satisfaction  for  the  sin  by  good  works.  Absolution,  in 
which  the  priest  says  ""  Te  absolvo,"  (I  absolve  thee),  is  the 
essential  part  of  this  sacrament. 


THE   REFORMATION  IO5 

Marriage  is  a  sacrament  of  the  Church  even  though  the 
unmarried  state  is  regarded  as  the  hoHer.  It  can  be  per- 
formed only  by  a  priest  of  the  CathoHc  church,  and  is  in 
its  very  nature  indissoluble.  Hence  Protestant  and  civil 
marriage  are  not  normally  recognized  and  divorce  is  never 
granted.  Persons  are  permitted  to  live  apart,  and  mar- 
riages are  declared  to  have  been  illegal  and  null  from  the 
start,  but  a  genuine  marriage  is  never  dissolved  by  divorce. 

Ordination  can  be  administered  by  the  bishop  only  and 
confers  mighty  supernatural  powers  upon  the  recipient  by 
which  he,  irrespective  of  his  character,  becomes  a  mediator 
between  God  and  man. 

Extreme  unction  is  the  final  anointing  by  the  priest  just 
before  death  and  is  supposed  to  prepare  the  soul  for  the 
last  great  trial. 

Good  works  of  various  kinds  such  as  prayers  often  re- 
peated, alms,  pilgrimages,  adoration  of  images  and  relics 
contribute  to  but  do  not  effect  salvation  apart  from  the 
sacraments. 

3.  The  Mass,  described  in  an  earlier  section,  is  the  center 
of  Catholic  worship,  and  the  greatest  mystery  of  the  church, 
supremely  beneficial  to  all,  both  living  and  dead,  to  whom 
its  blessings  may  be  designated. 

4.  Catholic  worship  is  spectacular  and  dramatic,  appeal- 
ing to  eye,  ear  and  nose.  It  is  in  the  Latin  language  and 
must  be  conducted  by  a  priest.  It  appeals  to  the  eye  through 
the  bodily  movements  of  the  priest  and  the  congregation,  the 
use  of  lights,  paintings  and  other  visible  objects;  to  the  ear 
through  the  chanting  of  the  choir  and  the  intoning  of  the 
priest ;  to  the  nose  through  the  incense.  Preaching  is  little 
cultivated  except  by  some  of  the  orders.  The  only  visible 
object  to  which  divine  worship  is  given  is  the  consecrated 
elements  of  the  supper  which  are  believed  to  be  the  actual 
glorified  Christ  and  are  therefore  truly  worshipped.  Pic- 
tures, images  and  relics  (that  is  parts  of  the  bodies  or  ob- 
jects connected  with  the  bodies  of  Christ  or  the  saints) 
are  adored  or  venerated,  and  the  saints  are  invoked  for  their 


I06  THE    COURSE    OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

aid,  but  not  truly  zvorshiped,  at  least  in  theory.  The  Catho- 
lie  cathedrals  are  among  the  most  magnificent  and  impres- 
sive buildings  in  the  world.  Pious  Catholics  are  much  given 
to  private  worship  in  the  churches,  v^hen  they  can  be  seen 
counting  the  prayers  by  the  beads  of  the  rosary  which  they 
use  for  that  purpose,  believing  that  they  will  be  heard  foi* 
their  much  speaking. 

5.  Catholic  theology  was  virtually  complete  at  the  out- 
break of  the  Reformation.  The  church  stood  squarely  on 
the  great  ecumenical  creeds  as  to  the  doctrines  of  God,  the 
divinity  of  Christ,  the  personality  and  the  work  of  the  Holy 
Spirit ;  and  most  Catholics  believed  firmly  in  original  sin 
and  the  inability  of  men  to  save  themselves  apart  from  the 
grace  and  help  of  God.  The  distinctive  Catholic  beliefs 
as  to  the  sacraments  and  the  plan  of  salvation  had  been 
discussed  to  a  conclusion  but  they  had  not  yet  been  formu- 
lated into  a  creed.  That  was  done  in  the  great  Council  of 
Trent  which  met  in  1545. 

6.  The  Future  Life  was  divided  into  five  compartments  — 
hell  for  the  unbaptized  and  the  heretics,  heaven  for  the 
blessed,  purgatory  for  those  who  die  in  communion  with 
the  Catholic  church.  They  must  remain  here  till  the  rem- 
nants of  sin  are  purged  away  when  they  ascend  to  heaven. 
The  Umbo  of  infarits  is  a  place  in  which  all  infants  who  die 
unbaptized  are  kept  perpetually,  and  the  limbo  of  the  fathers 
a  place  in  which  the  pious  dead  of  the  Old  Testament  were 
kept  till  freed  by  Christ.  There  is  no  escape  from  hell, 
but  purgatory  will  finally  be  left  empty,  since  the  souls  as 
they  are  completely  purged  ascend  into  heaven. 

7.  The  Confessional  was  one  of  the  church's  secrets  of 
power  and  also  one  of  its  sources  of  weakness.  All  serious 
or  mortal  sins  must  be  confessed  and  as  many  of  the  smaller 
venial  sins  as  can  be  remembered.  Every  good  Catholic 
must  go  to  confession  at  least  once  a  year,  preferably  just 
before  Easter.  This  baring  of  the  soul  and  the  life  gave 
the  unworthy  priest  a  power  and  an  opportunity  for  evil 
which  was  not  infrequently  utilized. 


THE   REFORMATION  IQJ 

8.  Indulgences.  The  power  of  the  church  over  the  soul 
was  supposed  not  to  cease  with  death,  but  extended  into 
purgatory  where  the  church  could  shorten  the  purgatorial 
sufferings  by  the  use  of  the  indulgence.  An  indulgence, 
as  has  often  been  asserted,  was  not  a  permission  to  sin.  It 
had  to  do  only  with  past  sins  of  which  the  guilt  and  the 
eternal  punishment  due  to  them,  had  been  removed  by  the 
sacrament  of  penance.  The  indulgence  was  the  church's 
means  of  shortening  the  period  of  suffering  in  purgatory 
and  transferring  some  of  the  (supposedly)  superabounding 
good  works,  which  Christ  and  the  saints  had  laid  up  in  the 
treasury  of  the  church,  to  these  bare  and  needy  souls. 
These  indulgences  were  sold  at  public  auction  and  were  one 
of  the  church's  most  important  sources  of  revenue  up  to  the 
Reformation,  constituting  one  of  the  gravest  scandals  of 
the  time.  Their  sale  provoked  the  attack  of  Luther. 
^  9.  The  wealth  of  the  church  was  enormous.  It  con- 
sisted of  church  and  monastic  buildings,  and  extensive  hold- 
ings in  lands  and  slaves.  It  is  estimated  that  in  some  coun- 
tries the  church  held  as  much  as  one  fifth  of  the  property 
of  the  nation. 

^  This  then  was  the  mighty  institution  which  the  Reforma- 
tion attacked.  It  was  ancient,  wealthy,  backed  by  civil 
government;  it  was  the  religion  of  princes  and  kings  and 
the  great  of  the  earth,  controlling  all  the  schools,  printing 
presses  and  learning  of  the  world.  The  battle  seemed  ut- 
terly hopeless  but  God  and  truth  were  in  it. 

§65 

THE  REFORMATION 

The  Reformation  began  in  Germany  and  gradually  spread 
to  the  countries  of  western  Europe  ultimately  affecting  the 
whole  of  the  territory  that  was  held  by  the  Roman  Catholic 
church.  It  did  not  preserve  unity,  but  took  five  different 
forms  and  also  forced  considerable  reforms  in  the  Catholic 


I08  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

church  itself.     These  forms  were  Lutheranism,  Zwinglian- 
ism,  Calvinism,  Anabaptism,  and  Anglicanism. 


A.     LUTHERANISM 
§66 

LUTHER 

The  first  form  of  the  Reformation  to  arise  was  that  known 
as  Lutheranism.  It  is  named  of  course  from  its  founder 
Martin  Luther,  and  originated  in  electoral  Saxony  in  the 
heart  of  Germany  at  the  university  town  of  Wittenberg 
where  Luther  was  then  a  professor.  Luther  was  born  in 
1483,  the  son  of  a  miner,  a  plain  man  who  succeeded  in  giv- 
ing to  his  son  Martin  the  best  education  that  Germany  could 
at  that  time  furnish.  He  intended  Martin  for  the  profes- 
sion of  the  law  and  his  education  took  that  direction.  He 
had  made  a  brilliant  record  as  a  student  and  his  prospects 
were  the  brightest,  but  almost  immediately  on  his  graduation 
he  renounced  all  his  friendships  and  prospects  and  entered 
an  Augustinian  monastery,  much  to  the  chagrin  and  disap- 
pointment of  his  father  and  friends.  From  the  start  he 
took  his  religious  duties  seriously.  So  strenuous  were  his 
ascetic  exercises  that  his  superior  was  impelled  to  counsel 
moderation  in  the  interest  of  his  health  and  future  useful- 
ness. His  brilliant  talents  and  earnestness  won  for  him 
speedy  recognition  and  he  was  made  a  professor  in  the  new 
university  of  Wittenberg  in  1509.  His  work  as  professor 
did  not  prevent  him  from  rendering  further  service  to  his 
order,  and  as  a  recognition  of  that  service  he  was  sent  to 
Rome  on  business  of  the  order  in  the  year  15 12.  This 
visit  to  the  eternal  city,  the  heart  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
world,  brought  serious  disillusionment.  He  found  the  liv- 
ing loose,  the  religious  exercises  perfunctory  and  lifeless, 
himself  the  butt  of  ridicule  among  the  luxurious  and  care- 
less priests  of  the  city.     Returning  to  Germany  he  gave 


THE   REFORMATION  I09 

himself  more  earnestly  to  the  teaching  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment, expounding  Romans  and  Galatians  where  the  great 
doctrine  of  justification  is  most  plainly  set  forth.  Gradu- 
ally he  found  himself  becoming  the  critic  of  his  church, 
and  when  Tetzel,  a  hawker  of  indulgences,  appeared  on  the 
border  of  Saxony  in  the  fall  of  15 17  he  could  no  longer  re- 
strain his  rising  indignation.  For  years  the  popes  had  been 
in  this  way  raising  great  sums  of  money  most  of  which 
was  wasted  on  the  luxuries  and  immoralities  of  the  papal 
court  at  Rome.  It  had  become  a  crying  scandal.  Of  the 
various  means  employed  to  extract  money  from  the  poor 
and  superstitious  the  sale  of  indulgences  was  the  most  ob- 
jectionable, because  it  seemed  to  be  selling  the  grace  of 
God,  thereby  fostering  superstition  and  bringing  religion  into 
contempt. 

§67 

EARLY   STRUGGLES 

Accordingly  on  the  last  day  of  October,  1517,  Professor 
Luther  nailed  to  the  door  of  the  castle  church  at  Wittenberg 
ninety-five  theses  attacking  both  the  theory  and  the  practice 
of  indulgences  as  then  current.  These  theses  he  proposed 
to  defend  against  all  comers.  What  he  expected  and  wished 
was  a  discussion  in  academic  and  ecclesiastical  circles  which 
would  result  in  restoring  the  theory  and  practice  of  indul- 
gences to  the  position  held  years  before.  It  was  not  in  his 
mind  to  break  with  the  Catholic  church  or  even  to  condemn 
the  use  of  indulgences;  he  only  wished  to  remove  what  he 
regarded  as  abuses  in  their  use.  But  we  have  seen  that  the 
world  had  been  laying  the  train  for  a  mighty  explosion,  and 
the  theses  were  the  spark  that  set  this  train  ofT.  Instead 
of  an  academic  discussion  they  precipitated  throughout  the 
entire  Catholic  world  a  tremendous  upheaval.  Luther  found 
himself  at  once  the  center  of  a  mighty  movement  that  was 
soon  beyond  his  control  and  rapidly  pushed  him  and  most 


no  THE   COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

of  Germany  out  of  the  Catholic  church,  made  him  the 
popular  hero  of  the  Fatherland  and  an  object  of  execration 
to  the  church  that  educated  and  nurtured  him. 

At  once  a  furious  controversy  broke  out  all  over  Germany. 
Luther  v^as  summoned  to  Rome  where  he  would  undoubt- 
edly have  been  put  to  death  in  short  order  had  he  gone. 
Fortunately  for  the  world  his  prince,  who  was  a  devout  man, 
was  unwilling  to  sacrifice  to  Roman  pride  his  popular  and 
brave  professor,  and  so  protected  him  in  his  refusal  to  go. 
Germany  was  at  that  time  an  aggregation  of  small  semi- 
independent  states  which  could  control  their  own  internal 
affairs  in  defiance  of  the  emperor,  and  we  probably  owe  to 
this  political  fact  the  preservation  of  Luther's  life  and  the 
success  of  the  Reformation  at  this  time.  Had  Germany 
been  a  strongly  centralized  government  as  at  the  present 
time  the  emperor  would  undoubtedly  have  suppressed  the 
movement  at  the  behest  of  the  pope,  as  he  actually  tried  to 
do  but  found  himself  unable. 

After  a  period  of  fruitless  negotiations  the  pope  excom- 
municated Luther  in  1520  and  ordered  the  German  princes 
to  apprehend  him.  Again  his  prince  defended  and  pro- 
tected him.  In  1521  the  new  emperor  Charles  V,  more 
a  Spaniard  than  a  German,  was  present  at  the  diet  of  the 
empire  at  Worms.  Luther  was  publicly  heard  before  that 
august  tribunal  where  he  bravely  held  his  ground,  refusing 
to  recant  and  uttering  those  memorable  words,  "  Here  I 
stand,  I  can  no  other.  God  help  me."  He  was  then  put 
under  the  ban  of  the  empire  but  still  his  prince  protected 
him.  It  was  at  this  time  that  he  was  arrested  by  his 
friends  and  carried  to  the  Wartburg  castle  where  he  was 
kept  in  hiding  for  nearly  two  years.  Luther  had  now  de- 
fied the  two  mightiest  powers  of  earth  and  yet  he  lived  and 
was  finally  able  to  die  in  bed.  A  century  before,  as  shown 
by  the  fate  of  Hus  and  Jerome  of  Prague,  he  would  have 
died  a  martyr  at  the  stake ;  but  there  is  now  a  new  spirit 
in  the  world  that  is  greater  than  the  Catholic  church  and 
the  German  empire  combined.     Under  the  protection  of  that 


THE   REFORMATION  III 

Spirit  and  the  political  conditions  of  Germany  he  was  able 
to  proceed  with  his  work. 

§68 

FURTHER   PROGRESS   OF   REFORM 

Luther  soon  renounced  his  monastic  vows  and  married  a 
nun  who  had  like  him  left  her  monastic  life.  In  the  year 
1526  the  movement  had  made  sufficient  progress  to  begin 
the  actual  reform  of  the  church  in  Saxony.  This  was  done 
with  the  approval  and  help  of  the  civil  government,  not  only 
in  Saxony  but  wherever  the  Reformation  was  successful. 
The  Reformers  were  firmly  attached  to  the  idea  that  re- 
ligion is  a  matter  of  public  concern  to  which  the  civil  au- 
thorities must  lend  the  weight  of  their  influence  and  official 
power.  And  as  far  as  we  can  see  the  movement  would 
have  been  stifled  in  blood  by  the  Catholic  church  but  for 
the  protection  of  the  state.  Right  or  wrong  the  reformers 
all  threw  themselves  on  the  support  of  the  state  and  every- 
where the  reforms  were  carried  through  with  the  help  of 
the  state,  everywhere  there  was  a  new  and  more  intimate 
union  between  church  and  state,  a  condition  that  laid  the 
foundation  for  much  suffering  in  the  future  and  created 
problems  that  have  not  yet  been  solved. 

With  the  help  of  the  government  Catholic  worship  was 
abolished  and  a  new  evangelical  service  in  the  German  lan- 
guage was  imposed  upon  all  ministers  of  religion ;  all  priests 
who  would  not  accept  the  new  regime  were  removed  and 
evangelical  men  were  put  in  their  places,  the  church  build- 
ings were  taken  over  for  Protestant  worship,  monasticism 
was  abolished  and  monastic  buildings  confiscated,  a  state- 
ment of  evangelical  doctrines  was  substituted  for  the  Catho- 
lic doctrines,  relics  were  taken  out  of  the  churches  and  buried 
and  the  images  and  pictures  removed  from  worship.  The 
new  church  in  its  government  was  then  subjected  to  the 
state  by  a  system  of  superintendents  answerable  to  the  civil 


112  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

authorities  for  their  actions.     In  governmental  matters  the 
princes  took  the  place  of  the  bishops. 

Very  rapidly  the  reform  was  introduced  into  many  other 
states  of  northern  Germany,  so  that  by  1546  nearly  half 
of  the  country  had  left  the  Catholic  church  and  set  up  new 
territorial  churches  on  the  Lutheran  model.  Only  where 
civil  government  had  suppressed  the  movement  had  it 
failed. 

§69 

LUTHERAN    BELIEFS   AND   PRACTICES 

The  Reformation  was  at  first  more  a  reform  of  doctrines 
and  practices  than  of  life  among  the  people.  In  fact  for  a 
while  the  new  freedom  had  a  deleterious  effect  on  the  life 
of  the  people. 

In  the  matter  of  doctrine  the  reformers  accepted  the  old 
creeds  in  their  teachings  concerning  God,  the  divinity  and 
the  humanity  of  Christ,  the  personality  and  work  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  the  corruption  and  lost  condition  of  men,  the 
immortality  of  the  soul. 

The  greatest  change  which  Luther  introduced  was  as  to 
the  plan  of  salvation,  the  way  in  which  the  grace  of  God 
reaches  the  heart  and  life  of  men.  He  rejected  the  author- 
ity of  tradition,  insisted  on  the  sole  authority  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, rejected  the  special  priesthood  and  insisted  on  the 
priesthood  of  all  believers,  rejected  the  whole  sacramental 
system  of  salvation  declaring  that  justification  is  by  faith. 
Indeed  justification  by  faith  was  the  very  center  of  his 
system.  He  retained  the  baptism  which  he  had  received 
in  the  Catholic  church  including  infant  baptism  and  the 
doctrine  of  baptismal  regeneration.  This  was  a  radical  con- 
tradiction of  his  doctrine  of  justification  by  faith,  but  he 
does  not  seem  to  have  felt  the  inconsistency.  He  likewise 
retained  his  Catholic  ordination  without  reordination  or 
change. 

Luther  rejected  the  doctrine  of  transubstantiation  and  the 


THE  REFORMATION  II3 

sacrifice  of  the  mass,  but  held  that  the  glorified  body  and 
blood  of  Christ  are  really  and  sacramentally  present  in  the 
bread  and  the  wine,  both  of  which  are  to  be  given  to  the 
laity.  He  retained  clerical  dress,  lights  in  the  worship, 
confirmation  and  a  form  of  general  congregational  confes- 
sion, abolishing  auricular  or  private  confession. 

He  rejected  the  doctrine  of  purgatory  and  all  other  doc- 
trines dependent  on  it  or  related  to  it,  maintaining  that  the 
future  has  only  heaven  or  hell  and  that  our  destiny  is  fixed 
at  death.  Good  works  are  a  necessary  fruit  of  faith,  but  are 
not  in  themselves  a  meritorious  cause  of  salvation. 


§70 

LUTHERANISM    IN   OTHER   LANDS 

From  Germany  the  Reformation  spread  to  Denmark, 
Sweden  and  Norway  where  it  was  after  a  brief  period  of 
struggle  completely  triumphant.  The  Catholic  church  was 
abolished  by  law  and  a  reformed  national  church  of  the 
Lutheran  type  was  organized  in  each  of  these  countries. 
In  some  instances  the  bishops  of  the  Catholic  church  were 
converted  to  Protestant  views.  They  were  then  permitted 
to  retain  their  positions,  thus  creating  in  these  lands  Lu- 
theran churches  with  bishops. 

Along  the  eastern  border  of  Germany  in  Poland,  Bohemia 
and  Moravia  the  Reformation  made  a  very  deep  impression 
notwithstanding  the  hostility  of  the  various  governments. 
In  Bohemia  more  than  half  the  population  was  at  one  time 
Protestant.  It  was  largely  stamped  out  in  these  regions  by 
the  Thirty  Years  War. 

In  south  Germany  and  the  Austrian  lands  the  various  gov- 
ernments refused  to  allow  the  preaching  of  the  gospel,  pro- 
ceeding with  the  most  ruthless  persecution  against  the  re- 
formers. As  a  consequence  the  Reformation  made  little 
impression  in  these  lands.  Bavaria,  and  the  Austrian  arch- 
duchy were  kept  comparatively  free  of  Protestant  views, 


114  THE   COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

but  in  Hungary  the  reformatory  movement  was  more  suc- 
cessful and  was  never  suppressed  entirely. 

In  Italy  and  Spain  Catholic  sentiment  was  strong  and  the 
governments  were  ruthless,  but  still  these  countries  did  not 
remain  wholly  unaffected.  In  northern  Italy  and  around 
Naples  there  were  many  noble  men  and  women  who  sought 
diligently  if  secretly  to  introduce  reforms.  Churches  were 
founded  in  Naples  and  Venice  and  groups  of  reformers 
gathered  elsewhere ;  but  the  movement  was  suppressed  about 
the  middle  of  the  century. 

In  Spain  the  king,  Philip  II,  honored  the  burnings  called 
mdos  da  fe  (Acts  of  faith),  with  his  royal  presence,  com- 
pletely suppressing  the  movement  in  this  country.  Portugal 
was  never  affected,  being  the  one  country  in  Europe  which 
remained  entirely  dormant. 


B.    THE  ZWINGLIAN  REFORMATION 

§71 

CONDITIONS    IN    SWITZERLAND 

Switzerland  was  still  nominally  a  part  of  the  German 
empire  at  the  beginning  of  the  Reformation  though  as  a 
matter  of  fact  it  had  long  acted  in  entire  independence.  It 
consisted  as  at  present  of  a  number  of  independent  cantons, 
each  with  its  own  council  managing  its  own  internal  affairs ; 
these  cantons  were  associated  in  a  loose  confederation  whose 
business  was  directed  by  a  large  representative  council.  By 
this  arrangement  each  canton  was  a  political,  social  and 
religious  entity  living  its  own  separate  life  but  acting  in 
concert  with  other  cantons  about  matters  of  common  con- 
cern. 

The  earliest  and  greatest  of  the  Swiss  reformers  was 
Ulrich  Zwingli,  born  in  1484  of  a  good  family  and  edu- 
cated in  the  best  schools  and  universities  of  his  time.     One 


THE   REFORMATION  II5 

year  younger  he  began  his  reformatory  work  some  three  or 
four  years  later  than  Luther.  He  reached  his  convictions 
largely  if  not  in  entire  independence  of  the  work  of  Luther. 
Certainly  his  system  differed  materially  from  that  of  Luther 
in  several  important  respects.  Like  Luther,  Zwingli  was 
reared  and  educated  in  the  Catholic  church  and  became  a 
priest  of  that  communion.  He  was  a  preacher  of  unusual 
power  and  had  been  far  more  diligent  in  exercising  his 
preaching  gifts  than  most  Catholic  priests.  In  1519  he  be- 
came priest  of  the  leading  church  of  Zurich,  one  of  the  prin- 
cipal cities  of  the  country.  Here  he  devoted  himself  to 
diligent  and  careful  study  of  the  Scriptures  in  the  course  of 
his  preaching  and  under  the  influence  of  his  own  studies  he 
gradually  left  the  Catholic  position.  His  conversion  was 
more  intellectual  and  less  emotional  than  Luther's,  and  cer- 
tainly far  more  thorough.  His  final  position  was  more 
radically  Scriptural  than  Luther's.  Luther's  principle  of 
reform  was  the  retention  in  the  church  of  everything  which 
the  Scriptures  did  not  forbid ;  Zwingli's  was  the  rejection  of 
all  that  the  Scriptures  did  not  warrant. 

Under  his  leadership  the  canton  of  Zurich  abolished  the 
Catholic  church  and  set  up  a  reformed  church  during  the 
years  from  1523  to  1525. 

Following  this  canton  several  others  rapidly  took  the 
same  step.  The  most  important  of  these  were  St.  Gall, 
Basel  and  Berne.  The  cantons  in  the  center  of  the  country, 
known  as  the  ''  forest  cantons,"  remained  staunchly  Catho- 
lic. The  tension  between  the  two  parties  became  so  great 
that  war,  narrowly  averted  in  1529,  broke  out  in  1532.  In 
the  one  battle  which  was  fought  the  reformers  were  badly 
worsted  and  Zwingli  was  killed.  The  Catholics,  finding 
his  body  on  the  field,  dismembered  and  burned  it,  scattering 
the  ashes  to  the  winds.  This  was  the  first  of  the  so-called 
"  wars  of  religion  "  that  rose  out  of  the  great  struggle  to 
emancipate  the  world  from  the  thraldom  of  the  Catholic 
church.     The  progress  of  reform  was  thus  stopped  by  force 


Il6  THE    COURSE    OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

in  Switzerland,  but  the  Catholics  could  not  suppress  the 
reform  where  it  had  already  been  established.  The  country 
remained  divided  between  Catholicism  and  Protestantism. 

§72 

ZWINGLl's   VIEWS 

Like  Luther,  Zwingli  rejected  the  distinctive  doctrines  and 
practices  of  the  Catholic  church  —  its  priesthood  and  sacra- 
ments, the  authority  of  the  pope  and  of  tradition,  the  mass 
and  transubstantiation,  purgatory  and  all  its  related  doc- 
trines. He  taught  the  sole  authority  of  the  Scriptures  and 
followed  the  implications  of  this  doctrine  much  more  con- 
sistently than  Luther ;  the  priesthood  of  all  believers ;  salva- 
tion by  grace  through  faith  and  a  future  life  that  had  only 
heaven  and  hell. 

But  on  many  points  he  differed  from  Luther.  After 
some  hesitation  he  retained  infant  baptism,  but  insisted  that 
it  had  nothing  to  do  with  regeneration,  being  only  the  sign 
of  the  Christian  covenant  as  circumcision  was  of  the  Jew- 
ish covenant.  This  was  the  first  time  in  history,  with  the 
exception  of  Pelagius,  that  the  baptism  of  infants  had  ever 
been  practiced  for  any  other  reason  than  its  supposed  re- 
generative power.  Zwingli  marks  a  new  stage  in  the  history 
of  infant  baptism. 

He  differed  also  in  his  view  of  the  Lord's  supper.  Luther 
maintained  the  real  presence  of  Christ  in  the  supper  as 
firmly  as  the  Catholics,  differing  only  as  to  the  manner  of 
its  presence.  Zwingli  declared  that  Christ  was  in  no  sense 
in  the  bread  and  the  wine,  but  that  they  represented,  set 
forth  in  a  pictorial  way,  his  body  and  his  blood.  They  are 
memorials,  reminders  of  Christ's  death.  They  thus  have 
great  value  for  the  spiritual  life,  but  it  is  not  by  taking 
Christ  into  the  mouth.  On  this  point  Luther  and  his  fol- 
lowers were  absolutely  irreconcilable,  looking  upon  Zwingli 
and  his  followers  as  rank  rationalists  who  refused  to  accept 


THE   REFORMATION  II7 

the  clear  teachings  of  Scripture.  The  strife  between  the 
two  was  very  bitter.  Friends  of  the  general  Protestant 
cause  brought  the  two  great  leaders  together  in  1529,  when 
it  looked  as  if  the  Catholics  were  about  to  attempt  to  sup- 
press them  all  by  force,  in  the  hope  that  some  kind  of  agree- 
ment might  be  reached  at  least  to  such  an  extent  as  to  unite 
them  in  resistance  to  Catholic  force.  But  they  not  only 
failed  to  agree,  but  Luther  refused  absolutely  to  have  any 
communion  with  Zwingli  or  even  to  call  him  brother,  saying 
they  were  of  a  different  spirit.  Thus  came  the  first  serious 
split  in  the  ranks  of  the  reformers. 

Owing  to  the  radical  nature  of  his  views  as  well  as  to  his 
early  death  and  the  small  and  uninfluential  country  in  which 
he  lived  Zwingli's  views  did  not  spread  widely.  South 
Germany  was  considerably  affected,  especially  certain  free 
cities  of  that  region.  His  views  also  passed  down  the  Rhine 
and  made  considerable  impression  on  the  Dutch.  Doubtless, 
Zwingli's  influence  would  have  been  much  more  evident  if 
Calvin  had  not  risen.  Zwingli's  followers  were  later  ab- 
sorbed by  Calvinism  and  are  known  on  the  continent  of 
Europe  as  ''  Reformed,"  while  in  English-speaking  countries 
they  are  called  Presbyterians. 


C    THE  CALVINISTIC  REFORMATION 
§73 

JOHN    CALVIN 

John  Calvin  belonged  to  the  second  generation  of  re- 
formers. He  was  preceded  by  Luther  and  ZwingH,  upon 
whose  work  he  built.  He  was  a  Frenchman,  and  his  whole 
system  shows  the  genius  of  the  French.  He  was  born  in 
1509,  when  Luther  was  twenty-four  years  old,  in  Noyon, 
France,  of  a  rather  influential  and  prominent  family. 
Through  the  influence  of  his  father  he  held  positions  in  the 
Catholic  church  while  he  was  still  a  boy.     He  was  given  the 


Il8  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

best  education  that  France  could  afford  at  that  time,  every- 
where making  a  brilliant  record  as  a  student.  Like  Luther 
he  prepared  for  the  profession  of  the  law,  but  showed  re- 
markable literary  gifts  during  his  university  career.  At  one 
point  in  his  educational  training  he  had  come  into  contact 
with  a  teacher  who  was  imbued  with  the  teachings  of 
Luther,  and  it  is  supposed  that  his  attention  was  first  directed 
to  the  Reformation  by  this  teacher.  His  conversion,  as  he 
himself  tells  us,  was  sudden.  About  1533  he  was  so  far 
known  as  a  Protestant  sympathizer  that  he  was  arrested 
and  imprisoned.  Escaping  he  wandered  about  France  for 
a  time  and  made  a  visit  to  some  reformers  in  Italy.  He 
then  determined  to  leave  France  and  take  up  his  residence 
in  Basel  or  Strassburg,  where  he  would  be  safe  and  have 
opportunity  to  pursue  the  literary  work  to  which  he  had 
resolved  to  dedicate  his  talents.  On  his  way  he  was  spend- 
ing a  night  in  Geneva,  when  the  reformer  Farel,  who  was 
then  in  a  life  and  death  struggle  for  the  introduction  of 
reform  into  that  canton,  made  such  a  soul-stirring  appeal 
that  Calvin  reluctantly  decided  to  remain  and  assist  in  that 
work.     This  was  in  the  year  1536. 

Calvin's  great  ability  and  earnest  efforts  soon  put  him  at 
the  head  of  the  civil  as  well  as  the  religious  life  of  the  city. 
After  reformatory  opinion  was  sufficiently  advanced  the 
reformation  was  formally  and  legally  introduced  in  the  usual 
way.  For  a  time  there  was  strenuous  opposition  to  the 
severe  discipline  which  Calvin  insisted  on  imposing  on  the 
whole  population.  He  was  driven  into  exile  for  a  while, 
but  the  city  soon  learned  that  they  could  not  get  on  and 
preserve  their  liberties  without  him ;  accordingly  he  was 
brought  back  in  triumph  and  from  that  time  to  his  death  in 
1564  he  was  the  undisputed  master  of  the  city  and  the  can- 
ton. So  vast  was  his  influence  in  the  Protestant  world  that 
he  was  called  the  "  Protestant  Pope "  and  Geneva  was 
known  among  Catho'ics  as  "  Protestant  Rome."  From  one 
of  the  gayest  and  most  reckless  cities  of  Europe  Geneva 
was  transformed  into  the  soberest  and  most  law-abiding 


THE    REFORMATION  I IQ 

and  serious  city  of  the  world.  It  was  virtually  a  theocracy, 
the  church  completely  dominated  the  life  of  the  entire  com- 
munity. 

§74 
Calvin's  religious  system 

Calvinism  is  usually  regarded  as  a  system  of  theology 
only,  but  it  was  this  and  far  more.  As  a  system  of  theology 
it  was  the  most  logical,  consistent  and  thorough  statement 
of  Christian  doctrine  ever  given  to  the  world.  It  started 
from  the  sovereignty  of  God  and  from  this  controlling  idea 
deduced  all  the  other  elements  of  the  system,  such  as  de- 
crees, election,  the  security  of  believers,  the  helplessness  of 
the  unregenerate,  etc.  It  leaned  heavily  on  God  who  was 
all  and  in  all.  Man  was  utterly  helpless  except  as  God  by 
his  sovereign  will  helped  him.  Salvation  depended  on  elec- 
tion, and  the  reasons  for  election  were  hidden  in  the  in- 
scrutable will  of  God.  It  was  a  stern  system,  but  it  gave 
to  men  a  confidence  in  God  and  a  sense  of  divine  power  that 
put  red  blood  into  their  spiritual  veins  and  nerved  them  for 
the  mighty  struggle  that  was  upon  them  in  the  effort  to 
overthrow  the  Catholic  church. 

As  a  system  of  church  government  Calvinism  was  a 
democracy  —  not  an  absolute  democracy  such  as  Baptists 
and  Congregationalists  have,  but  a  representative  democracy, 
consisting  of  a  series  of  representative  bodies  ascending 
(with  different  terms  in  different  lands)  from  the  Session 
in  the  local  church  through  the  Presbytery  and  the  Synod 
to  the  General  Assembly.  These  various  bodies  exercise 
legislative,  executive  and  judicial  functions  under  the  con- 
trol of  the  Scriptures,  but  they  derive  their  powers  from 
the  people  not  from  the  government.  No  officers  were  ap- 
pointed by  the  government.  The  officers  were  ministers  or 
teaching  elders,  ruling  elders  and  deacons.  The  ministers 
were  members  of  the  presbyteries,  not  of  the  local  churches. 


120  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

The  type  of  Christian  life  was  rather  stern  and  somber. 
Strict  discipline  was  enforced,  even  by  the  civil  authorities 
if  necessary.  As  a  type  of  life  it  was  what  we  know  as 
Puritanism.  More  than  any  other  type  of  the  reformation 
except  the  Anabaptist  it  sought  to  reform  the  life  of  the 
people  as  well  as  the  theology  and  government  of  the 
church.  It  was  preeminently  ethical  and  practical,  ear- 
nestly striving  to  improve  the  living  of  the  people. 

Calvinism  established  national  churches  wherever  that  was 
possible,  and  was  unfortunately  nearly  as  intolerant  of  dis- 
senters as  was  any  other  type  of  Christianity.  Anabaptists 
suffered  as  severely  at  the  hands  of  the  Calvinists  as  of  the 
Lutherans. 

As  to  baptism  and  the  supper  Calvin  held  a  position  mid- 
way between  Luther  and  Zwingli.  Like  Zwingli  he  denied 
that  baptism  effected  regeneration,  but  insisted  that  it  was 
a  seal  as  well  as  a  sign  of  grace.  Like  both  his  predecessors 
he  retained  infant  baptism,  following  Zwingli  in  the  asser- 
tion that  it  was  a  sign  of  the  covenant  of  grace  and  hence 
was  to  be  conferred  on  none  but  the  children  of  Christian 
parents. 

As  to  the  supper  he  denied  that  the  body  and  blood  of 
Christ  are  actually  present  in  any  sense  whatsoever  in  the 
elements,  but  declared  that  the  communicant  does  actually 
partake  of  the  glorified  Christ  in  a  spiritual  manner  when 
he  partakes  in  faith.  Here  again  in  his  efforts  to  mediate 
between  Luther  and  Zwingli  his  reasoning  becomes  con- 
fused and  difficult  to  follow. 

As  to  future  life  he  rejected  the  idea  of  purgatory  and  all 
related  doctrines,  declaring  that  there  was  either  eternal 
happiness  or  eternal  misery  in  heaven  or  hell,  and  he  did 
not  shrink  from  the  position  that  non-elect  infants  dying  in 
infancy  could  not  escape  the  pains  of  an  eternal  hell. 


THE  ElEFORMATION  121 

§75 
CALVINISM    IN   OTHER   LANDS 

I.  In  France.  Since  Calvin  was  a  Frenchman  and  used 
the  French  language  it  was  to  be  expected  that  his  type  of 
reform  would  be  the  one  received  in  France  as  far  as  that 
staunch  Catholic  country  accepted  any.  France  was  already 
a  strongly  centralized  government  so  that  a  reformer  could 
not  be  protected  by  a  semi-independent  prince  as  Luther 
was  protected  by  the  elector  of  Saxony.  This  fact  made  it 
very  difficult  to  carry  on  reformatory  work,  especially  since 
the  king  Francis  I  was  an  exceedingly  able  prince  and  was 
bitterly  opposed  to  the  reform.  All  the  work  had  to  be 
done  secretly  and  in  the  face  of  the  severest  persecution 
from  1535  onward.  Notwithstanding  the  great  difficulties 
good  progress  was  made  and  in  the  year  1559  a  national 
Protestant  church  was  organized  on  the  Calvinistic  model, 
a  Calvinistic  creed  was  drawn  up  and  Calvinistic  worship 
was  instituted. 

Many  of  the  higher  nobility  now  gave  in  their  adhesion 
to  the  new  church,  and  political  conditions  were  such  as  to 
force  the  reformers  into  the  position  of  a  political  party. 
As  a  result  of  Catholic  opposition  civil  war  broke  out  in 
1562.  This  was  followed  by  other  civil  wars,  and  in  1572 
the  Catholics  deliberately  attempted  to  murder  in  cold  blood 
all  the  Protestant  leaders  on  the  occasion  of  a  royal  mar- 
riage which  had  brought  all  the  nobility  together  at  Paris. 
Thousands  of  Protestants  were  butchered.  This  was  the 
famous  night  of  St.  Bartholomew.  It  is  said  that  its  ap- 
parent success  caused  Philip  II  of  Spain  to  smile  and  the 
pope  to  have  a  thanksgiving  service  in  St.  Peter's  in  Rome. 

Before  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century  there  had  been 
eight  separate  civil  wars  over  religion  in  France.  This 
period  of  civil  strife  was  brought  temporarily  to  a  close  by 
the  accession  of  Henry  IV.  He  had  been  reared  a  Protest- 
ant but  in  order  to  obtain  the  throne  gave  in  a  nominal 


122  THE   COURSE  OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

adherence  to  the  Catholic  church,  saying  that  the  crown 
was  worth  a  mass.  In  1598  he  granted  to  the  Protestants 
the  famous  Edict  of  Nantes  by  which  they  received  full 
civil  liberty  and  a  limited  religious  toleration.  In  certain 
districts  they  were  permitted  to  erect  church  buildings, 
found  schools  and  seminaries,  and  in  addition  were  allowed 
to  retain  four  fortified  cities  with  armed  military  forces  for 
their  protection. 

Under  the  protection  of  this  edict,  at  that  time  the  most 
liberal  arrangement  that  Protestants  had  been  able  to  ob- 
tain for  themselves  in  any  Catholic  land,  they  flourished 
for  many  years.  Finally  persecution  began  again  and  in 
1685  the  edict  was  revoked.  Protestants  then  had  no 
legal  standing  and  thousands  were  hunted  out  of  the  land 
while  thousands  more  endured  unspeakable  sufferings  or 
returned  to  the  bosom  of  the  Catholic  church  under  duress. 
It  was  a  fatal  blow  to  the  religious  and  moral  life  of  France 
and  marks  the  beginning  of  her  decline.  For  one  hundred 
and  two  years  the  whole  power  of  the  French  state  was 
engaged  in  uprooting  these  Huguenots,  as  they  were  called. 
Protestantism  never  recovered  from  this  awful  ordeal, 
neither  did  France. 

2.  In  the  Netherlands.  The  Netherlands  were  early  af- 
fected by  the  Lutheran  and  Zwinglian  forms  of  the  Reforma- 
tion. Persecution  had  broken  out  at  once  and  the  first 
martyrs  of  the  Reformation  were  at  Brussels  in  1523. 
These  lands  were  under  the  direct  government  of  the  em- 
peror Charles  V,  who  exerted  his  utmost  energy  in  an 
effort  to  suppress  the  reformatory  movement.  The  fires 
of  persecution  were  burning  continuously  for  the  next  fifty 
years  and  tens  of  thousands  perished  at  the  stake. 

Finally  in  1555  the  Netherlands  were  transferred  from 
membership  in  the  German  empire  to  the  crown  of  Spain 
and  conferred  on  Philip  II  who  was  to  succeed  Charles  in 
that  country.  This  transfer  only  sharpened  persecution. 
In  1566  the  infamous  Alva  was  sent  to  the  country  with  a 
large  army  of   Spanish  veterans  to  put  down  the  reform 


THE   REFORMATION  I23 

finally  and  forever.  The  result  was  an  open  revolt  under 
William  of  Orange  who  finally  succeeded  in  freeing  the 
northern  provinces  entirely  from  the  yoke  of  Spain,  its 
independence  being  acknowledged  in  1648.  The  southern 
provinces,  now  constituting  Belgium,  were  saved  for  Spain 
and  the  Catholic  church. 

In  the  meantime  Calvinism  had  been  introduced  into  the 
northern  provinces  about  1562.  It  had  quickly  absorbed  the 
Protestantism  that  had  preceded  it  with  the  result  that  a 
Calvinistic  national  church  was  organized  and  by  law  estab- 
lished. Holland,  as  we  call  the  country,  thus  became  a 
Calvinistic  or  "  Reformed  "  people  with  an  established  Cal- 
vinistic church.  The  struggle  for  political  and  religious  in- 
dependence through  which  this  country  passed  is  one  of  the 
most  heroic  and  thrilling  chapters  to  be  found  in  all  the 
annals  of  mankind.  Under  the  new  regime  the  country 
flourished,  exercising  immense  influence  as  champion  of  civil 
and  religious  liberty. 

3.  In  Scotland.  Scotland  was  independent  at  this  time, 
but  the  king  was  weak  while  the  nobles  were  powerful  and 
the  church  was  rich  and  corrupt.  The  country  was  bitterly 
hostile  to  England,  and  consequently  was  the  friend  and 
ally  of  France.  These  circumstances  made  it  one  of  the 
last  countries  to  accept  the  reform.  The  Scotch  parliament 
forbade  the  circulation  of  Lutheran  literature  in  that  coun- 
try at  the  very  beginning  of  the  German  Reformation.  In 
1542  the  king  died  leaving  an  infant  daughter  Mary  to  suc- 
ceed him.  Her  mother  who  was  a  French  princess  became 
the  regent  and  at  once  dispatched  her  daughter  to  be  edu- 
cated by  her  relatives  in  France. 

Despite  all  the  stringency  of  the  government,  reformatory 
ideas  did  get  abroad.  About  1544  a  very  remarkable  man 
by  the  name  of  John  Knox  was  converted  to  Protestant 
views.  He  was  a  university  man  and  at  that  time  a  priest 
and  teacher  in  the  Catholic  church.  In  1546  he  was  im- 
pHcated  in  the  murder  of  the  head  of  the  Catholic  church  in 
Scotland,  Cardinal  Beaton,  the  profligate  archbishop  of  St. 


i24  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

Andrews.  With  the  help  of  the  French  he  was  captured 
and  sent  to  the  French  galleys  from  which  he  was  finally 
released  through  the  intercession  of  the  king  of  England. 
For  a  time  he  lived  in  England,  then  fled  to  the  continent 
at  the  accession  of  Mary  Tudor,  living  at  Geneva  and  else- 
where as  he  could.  At  Geneva  he  became  thoroughly  im- 
bued with  the  views  of  Calvin  and  was  henceforth  one  of 
his  most  vigorous  exponents. 

By  1556  enough  Scotch  nobles  had  accepted  the  Reforma- 
tion to  form  a  "  Covenant  "  and  a  union  for  their  own  pro- 
tection. Supported  by  them  Knox  was  able  to  return  to 
Scotland  in  1559.  Under  the  powerful  impression  made 
by  his  preaching  and  leadership  the  Scottish  Parliament 
formally  adopted  the  reform  in  the  year  1560.  Catholic 
worship  was  abolished,  monasteries  were  dissolved  and  the 
property  confiscated  for  the  erection  of  schools  and  hospitals, 
the  churches  were  supplied  with  evangelical  ministers  and 
a  Protestant  form  of  service  was  drawn  up.  A  national 
church  was  thus  organized  on  the  Calvinistic  model,  ex- 
pressing its  will  through  a  General  Assembly  which  was  to 
be  entirely  independent  of  the  crown.  Scotland  thus  became 
a  Calvinistic  country,  the  church  being  called  Presbyterian. 

Mary  Stuart,  who  had  grown  to  womanhood  in  France 
and  had  married  the  king  of  France,  was  left  a  widow  in 
1560.  She  then  returned  to  Scotland  to  take  up  the  reins  of 
government  there.  She  was  an  uncompromising  Catholic, 
and  almost  immediately  she  and  Knox  were  at  war.  She  at 
once  set  up  Catholic  worship  in  her  palace.  Holy  Rood. 
Knox  thundered  against  the  "  new  idolatry  "  from  his  pul- 
pit in  St.  Giles  near  by,  and  for  months  the  great  struggle 
went  merrily  on.  Mary's  doubtful  character,  the  attach- 
ment of  the  Scotch  to  the  Reformation  and  the  great  power 
of  Knox  as  a  fearless  champion  of  Calvinism,  gave  him  the 
victory.  In  1566  she  was  deposed  and  her  infant  son 
James  was  proclaimed  king.  She  fled  to  England,  threw 
herself  on  the  mercy  of  Elizabeth  whose  crown  she  had 
long  claimed,  was  imprisoned  and  finally  executed  in  1587 
after  an  imprisonment  of  twenty  years. 


THE   REFORMATION  125 

Under  James  the  Presbyterian  church  was  finally  legally 
established  as  the  national  church  of  Scotland,  though  he 
and  subsequent  rulers  strove  hard  to  destroy  its  democracy 
and  subject  it  to  the  state  more  completely  by  transforming 
it  into  an  Episcopal  church  whose  ruling  officials  should 
be  appointed  by  the  crown. 

4.  Calvinistic  influences  elsewhere.  Calvinism  made  a 
deep  impression  on  other  lands  where  it  was  not  finally 
successful.  It  spread  back  into  Germany  over  several  of 
the  states  along  the  Rhine  where  Lutheranism  had  already 
been  established.  The  Zwinglian  parts  of  Switzerland 
formally  accepted  the  Calvinistic  reform  about  the  middle 
of  the  sixteenth  century  while  the  Protestant  elements  of 
Hungary  went  over  almost  entirely  to  the  Calvinistic  posi- 
tion. Beginning  about  the  middle  of  the  century  England 
was  deeply  affected  by  Calvinism  both  in  doctrines  and 
ideals.  The  Calvinistic  movement  was  known  here  as 
Puritanism.  It  began  to  affect  the  church  under  Elizabeth, 
growing  in  power  under  James.  It  demanded  various  re- 
forms of  the  Anglican  church  along  with  the  adoption  of 
the  Presbyterian  form  of  church  government.  It  finally 
in  1642  precipitated  the  Civil  War  in  which  Charles  I  lost 
his  head  and  the  monarchy  was  overthrown.  With  the 
death  of  Oliver  Cromwell  it  lost  its  hold  on  the  govern- 
ment, but  it  had  stamped  its  impress  on  the  English  peo- 
ple permanently.  Out  of  its  ranks  arose  several  of  the 
English  denominations,  such  as  the  Congregationalists,  the 
English  Baptists,  the  Quakers  and  still  others  at  a  later 
period. 


D.    THE  ANABAPTIST  REFORMATION 

§76 

The  question  of  the  relation  of  the  Anabaptists  to  earlier 
evangelical  sects  is  still  in  dispute.  Undoubtedly  they  held 
many  of  the  same  doctrines  and  practices  as  those  held 


126  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

by  the  Waldenses  and  other  evangeHcal  sects  of  the  Middle 
Ages.  On  the  other  hand  they  never  united  with  these 
sects  or  seemed  conscious  of  any  connection  with  them; 
moreover,  the  Anabaptist  leaders  are  known  to  have  come 
out  of  the  Catholic  church  rather  than  from  the  sects. 

Around  both  Luther  and  Zwingli  there  arose  a  radical 
party  of  reformers  who  demanded  that  the  reform  should 
be  carried  through  to  its  logical  conclusion  in  an  attempt  to 
reestablish  apostolic  Christianity  without  waiting  for  the 
assistance  of  the  state.  This  involved  the  adoption  of  a 
program  so  radical  and  revolutionary  that  all  the  great  re- 
•  formers  shrank  from  it,  though  Zwingli  hesitated  for  a  time. 

When  these  radicals  finally  came  to  the  conclusion  that 
there  was  no  hope  for  a  genuine  scriptural  reform  with 
either  Luther  or  Zwingli  they  renounced  all  connection  with 
both  the  Catholic  church  and  the  Reformers  and  undertook 
the  reestablishment  of  primitive  Christianity  on  their  own 
responsibility.  They  began  at  infant  baptism.  Declaring 
that  it  was  an  invention  of  man,  was  unscriptural  and 
anti-Christian,  the  foundation  of  the  papacy  and  the  source 
of  the  worst  corruptions  from  which  Christianity  had  suf- 
fered through  the  ages,  they  renounced  it  and  fellowship 
with  all  who  practiced  it,  and  began  faith-baptism.  That 
baptism  they  did  not  get  from  the  Catholic  church,  but  be- 
lieved they  had  it  from  heaven  through  the  Scriptures. 
Because  of  this  rebaptism,  as  their  opponents  called  it,  they 
were  dubbed  Anabaptists  which  means  rebapticers,  a  name 
which  they  always  repudiated,  calling  themselves  disciples 
or  brothers. 

This  position  on  baptism  involved  radical  changes  in  other 
respects.  It  necessarily  involved  a  church  of  regenerate 
members  who  have  voluntarily  associated  themselves  to- 
gether in  the  faith  and  fellowship  of  the  gospel;  it  involved 
also  a  separation  between  church  and  state  and  a  citizenship 
based  on  civil  rather  than  religious  considerations ;  it  meant 
the  secularization  of  the  state  by  excluding  it  from  the  field 


THE   REFORMATION  12^ 

of  religion  and  consequent  religious  freedom;  it  led  to  re- 
ligious democracy  in  the  government  of  the  church  and  ul- 
timately to  democracy  in  the  state.  All  these  positions 
seemed  extremely  dangerous  in  those  days.  Persecution 
broke  out  at  once  and  was  carried  on  in  the  most  ruthless 
manner  not  only  by  the  Catholics,  but  also  by  all  parties 
of  Protestants.  Thousands  of  Anabaptists  perished  at  the 
stake  in  Switzerland  and  various  parts  of  Germany ;  nearly 
every  one  of  the  leading  reformers  favored  persecution; 
hundreds  of  books  and  pamphlets  were  written  against  them 
and  every  creed  condemned  their  doctrines.  They  were 
burned,  drowned  and  allowed  to  die  in  prison.  Against 
such  opposition  it  was  not  long  possible  to  make  progress. 
But  notwithstanding  their  terrible  sufferings  they  were  able 
to  maintain  their  existence  and  still  continue  in  small  groups 
in  Switzerland.  Under  the  name  of  Mennonites  they  are 
still  known  both  in  Europe  and  America.  They  were  a 
harmless  people  whose  chief  offense  was  their  piety  and 
their  religious  views. 

Some  of  their  doctrines  have  been  indicated  above.  Their 
fundamental  peculiarity  was  their  individualism  in  religion. 
They  believed  that  every  soul  possessed  the  right  to  decide 
all  religious  questions  for  itself,  a  right  which  could  not  be 
alienated  or  assumed  by  any  institution  whatsoever.  This 
is  also  the  view  of  Scripture  and  so  they  insisted  upon  the 
sole  and  sufficient  authority  of  the  Bible.  Standing  on  this 
foundation  they  rejected  infant  baptism  and  practiced  faith- 
baptism,  demanded  religious  freedom  and  the  separation 
between  church  and  state,  a  church  of  the  regenerate  kept 
pure  by  the  exercise  of  discipline,  a  church  free  and  able  to 
conduct  its  own  affairs. 

In  the  social  and  political  realm  they  opposed  war  and 
refused  to  bear  arms  or  pay  war  taxes,  refused  to  take  the 
oath  for  any  reason  whatsoever,  did  not  believe  genuine 
Christians  could  hold  civil  office,  opposed  capital  punish- 
ment and  trade  in  alcoholic  liquors  being  the  first  prohibi- 


128  THE    COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

tionists  of  modern  times,  objected  to  Christians  lending 
money  at  interest,  and  many  of  them  believed  and  actually 
strove  to  establish  community  of  goods. 


E.    THE  ENGLISH  REFORMATION 

POLITICAL   CONDITIONS 

England  was  already  a  strongly  centralized  government 
with  a  young,  ambitious  and  vigorous  king,  Henry  VIII. 
With  the  exception  of  the  revolt  of  Wycliffe  the  country 
had  been  most  loyal  to  the  Catholic  church.  In  the  early 
days  of  the  Reformation  in  Germany  rigorous  measures 
had  been  taken  against  reform  in  England,  the  king  himself 
writing  a  scurrilous  pamphlet  against  Luther.  Manifestly 
the  introduction  of  reform  would  be  possible  only  by  the 
conversion  of  the  ruler,  which  at  first  appeared  to  be  a 
remote  contingency. 

But  about  1527  Henry  decided  that  he  wished  a  divorce 
from  his  wife  Catherine.  She  had  been  the  widow  of  his 
elder  brother  Arthur  who  had  died  a  few  weeks  after 
the  marriage.  The  alliance  between  England  and  Spain 
had  appeared  so  important  to  both  countries  that  the  gov- 
ernments had  united  in  requesting  from  the  pope  a  dis- 
pensation for  the  marriage  of  Henry  to  the  widow,  it  be- 
ing contrary  to  Catholic  law  for  a  man  to  marry  his  brother's 
widow.  The  pope  had  granted  the  request  and  had  de- 
clared the  marriage  with  Henry  entirely  valid.  Now  Henry 
demanded  the  annulment  of  this  marriage.  Naturally  the 
pope  was  greatly  embarrassed  by  the  demand  since  his 
predecessor  had  decided  that  the  marriage  was  valid.  Still 
more  serious  perhaps  was  the  threat  of  Charles  V,  nephew 
of  Catherine,  that  he  would  certainly  punish  his  Holiness  if 
the  divorce  was  granted.  In  the  midst  of  these  difficulties 
and  dangers  the  pope  attempted  to  delay,  hoping  that  some- 


THE   REFORMATION  129 

thing  would  "  turn  up  "  to  relieve  the  embarrassment.  At 
last  Henry  lost  all  patience,  and  on  the  advice  of  Thomas 
Cromwell  decided  to  take  matters  into  his  own  hands  and 
secure  a  divorce  in  his  own  realms.  To  make  this  possible 
it  was  necessary  to  abolish  papal  jurisdiction  and  establish 
a  tribunal  in  England  which  would  have  authority  to  grant 
the  divorce.  Accordingly  in  1531  he  began  a  course  of 
legislation  which  speedily  transferred  to  the  crown  of  Eng- 
land all  the  authority  which  had  once  been  exercised  by 
the  pope.  Courts  were  then  created  which  granted  Henry 
the  desired  divorce,  and  in  1534  he  was  declared  to  be  the 
head  of  the  English  church. 

§78 

INTERNAL   REFORMS    UNDER    HENRY 

Henry's  activities  were  purely  political,  but  parallel  move- 
ments which  would  ultimately  lead  to  the  reform  of  the 
church  itself  were  beginning.  John  Tyndale,  a  priest  in 
the  west  of  England,  undertook  to  translate  the  Scriptures 
into  the  English  tongue.  Driven  out  of  the  country  by  per- 
secution he  fled  to  the  continent  where  he  finished  the 
New  Testament  and  got  it  printed.  It  was  then  smuggled 
into  England  and  distributed  by  merchants  as  they  could 
in  their  business.  Tyndale  was  at  last  apprehended  and 
martyred,  his  last  words  being  "  O  Lord,  open  the  king  of 
England's  eyes."  In  answer  to  this  prayer  and  almost  as 
an  echo  of  his  words  the  very  next  year  the  entire  Bible 
appeared  in  print  with  the  king's  approval.  This  first 
printed  English  Bible  is  known  as  Coverdale's  Bible,  from 
the  translator  who  prepared  it.  In  1537  Matthew's  Bible 
appeared  without  official  sanction  and  in  1539  the  Great 
Bible,  so  named  from  its  large  size,  was  officially  printed 
and  chained  in  the  churches,  though  it  was  not  yet  used  in 
the  services.  People  were  permitted  to  read  it  and  made 
large  use  of  the  privilege. 


130  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

In  1535  Henry,  who  was  a  great  spendthrift  and  always 
heavily  in  debt,  decided  to  confiscate  the  property  of  the 
monasteries  and  aboHsh  the  monastic  life  in  England.  This 
tremendous  change  was  carried  through  in  four  years, 
greatly  enriching  the  crown.  Most  of  the  money  was  lav- 
ished by  Henry  on  his  favorites  but  his  action  put  an  end 
in  England  to  one  of  the  most  objectionable  features  of 
mediaeval  Christianity.  Henry  died  in  1547  leaving  the 
church  still  Catholic  in  every  respect  except  that  it  had  been 
cut  off  from  the  papacy,  had  received  the  Scriptures  in  the 
English  tongue  and  had  suffered  the  abolition  of  monasti- 
cism.  Of  course  the  circulation  of  the  Scriptures  and  the 
preaching  based  upon  it  had  begun  to  leaven  the  mass  of 
the  English  people,  but  Catholic  faith  and  worship  were 
regnant  at  Henry's  death. 

§79 

REFORM    UNDER   EDWARD   VI 

Henry  was  succeeded  by  his  only  son  Edward.  He  was 
but  ten  years  of  age,  but  he  was  highly  gifted  and  was  a 
Protestant  in  sentiment.  The  regency  was  given  to  his 
uncle  who  was  also  Protestant  in  sentiment.  The  work 
of  abolishing  the  Catholic  church  and  introducing  Protes- 
tantism officially  and  legally  now  went  swiftly  forward.  A 
new  service  book  called  the  "  Book  of  Common  Prayer " 
was  drawn  up  by  Thomas  Cranmer,  archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury, assisted  by  other  scholars,  and  was  legally  imposed 
upon  all  ministers  of  the  church.  That  book  and  no  other 
must  be  used  in  all  the  churches  of  England.  It  was  based 
upon  older  liturgies  with  the  distinctively  Catholic  elements 
eliminated  and  is  unquestionably  one  of  the  most  satisfactory 
service  books  ever  produced  by  Protestants.  If  a  written 
service  is  to  be  used  at  all  this  one  can  hardly  be  improved 
upon.  It  is  still  with  slight  modifications  in  use  in  all 
Episcopal  churches  throughout  the  world. 


THE   REFORMATION  I3I 

A  Protestant  creed  was  also  drawn  up  and  imposed  upon 
ministers.  Thus  Catholic  worship  was  forbidden,  Catholic 
priests  in  so  far  as  they  refused  to  accept  the  new  regime 
were  expelled.  Protestant  ministers  were  installed  and 
Protestant  services  set  up  in  all  the  churches.  Catholicism 
like  other  sects  was  made  illegal  and  outlawed. 

§80 

UNDER   MARY   AND   ELIZABETH 

Edward  was  succeeded  by  his  sister  Mary,  the  daughter 
of  Catherine.  She  regarded  Protestantism  as  the  cause  of 
all  the  sufferings  and  disgrace  of  her  mother  and  herself, 
and  came  to  the  throne  with  the  one  master  passion  of  re- 
storing England  to  the  bosom  of  "  Mother  church  "  and 
punishing  the  Protestant  leaders  who  had  been  instrumental 
in  overthrowing  it.  As  soon  as  she  was  firmly  seated  she 
induced  Parliament  to  rescin'd  all  the  laws  which  had 
abolished  Catholicism  and  established  Protestantism,  thus 
reestablishing  Catholicism  as  the  religion  of  England.  But 
she  could  not  induce  Parliament  to  reconstitute  monasticism 
or  restore  to  the  church  the  property  that  had  been  con- 
fiscated. 

She  then  married  Philip  II  of  Spain,  the  most  fanatical 
and  at  that  time  one  of  the  most  powerful  rulers  of  the 
world.  By  his  help  the  country  was  formally  absolved 
and  received  back  into  the  church.  Several  Protestant 
leaders  were  then  tried  and  executed  as  heretics,  the  most 
notable  being  Bishops  Latimer  and  Ridley  and  Archbishop 
Cranmer.  As  the  two  former  were  led  to  the  stake  Latimer 
cried,  "  Let  us  play  the  man  to-day,  Master  Ridley,  for  by 
the  grace  of  God  we  shall  light  such  a  fire  in  England  as 
shall  never  be  put  out." 

Shaken  by  a  long  imprisonment  and  by  seeing  his  friends 
die  Cranmer  was  persuaded  to  recant,  but  in  the  final  scene 
bravely  recanted  his  recantation  and  at  the   stake  firmly 


132  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

held  his  right  hand  in  the  flames  till  it  was  consumed,  thus 
reasserting  his  Protestantism  in  the  most  effective  way 
possible.  Under  Mary's  regime  several  hundred  were  exe- 
cuted at  the  stake  as  heretics.  This  cruelty  fixed  upon  her 
the  stigma  of  "  Bloody  Mary,"  making  Catholicism  forever 
impossible  for  Anglo-Saxon  countries. 

Elizabeth  had  been  reared  a  Protestant,  but  had  con- 
formed to  the  Catholic  church  during  the  regime  of  Mary. 
On  her  accession  it  was  not  known  what  religious  attitude 
she  would  take.  Slowly  and  cautiously  she  turned  toward 
Protestantism.  Mary's  legislation  was  repealed,  the  re- 
formatory legislation  of  Henry  and  Edward,  slightly  modi- 
fied, was  revived,  the  English  church  again  restored  to 
Protestantism.  This  was  accompHshed  by  1562  and  con- 
stituted the  beginning  of  the  glorious  ''  Elizabethan  Era " 
in  which  England  forged  to  the  front  as  one  of  the  great 
European  world  powers.  Elizabeth  reestablished  the  Eng- 
lish church  on  the  Protestant  foundation  which  it  has  re- 
tained substantially  unchanged  to  the  present. 

§81 

CHARACTERISTICS   OF  THE  ENGLISH    CHURCH 

The  new  English  church  was  in  many  respects  nearer 
to  the  Catholics  than  any  other  form  of  Protestantism.  The 
old  Catholic  organization  was  unchanged  except  that  the 
sovereign  instead  of  the  pope  was  made  the  head  of  the 
church  and  all  papal  activity  was  cut  off.  Catholic  prop- 
erty was  all  taken  over  for  the  use  of  the  new  church,  while 
the  Catholic  succession  of  ordinations  and  baptism  was  con- 
tinued unchanged.  The  mass,  penance  and  extreme  unc- 
tion were  abandoned;  the  doctrine  of  purgatory  with  all 
related  doctrines  and  practices  were  abolished,  while  a 
Calvinistic  doctrine  of  the  supper  was  incorporated  in  the 
ritual  and  articles  of  faith.  Private  confession  was  aban- 
doned but  confirmation  by  the  bishop  and  a  form  of  general 
public  confession  was  retained.     Archbishops  and  bishops 


THE   REFORMATION 


133 


were  henceforth  to  be  appointed  by  the  king,  while  new 
EngHsh  courts  took  over  all  the  business  once  transacted 
by  the  pope. 

Anglican  worship  is  very  ornate  and  resembles  that  of 
the  Catholic  church  very  closely,  but  on  examination  it 
will  be  found  that  the  distinctive  Catholic  elements  were 
largely  eliminated.  It  is  but  just  to  state,  however,  that 
the  Catholicizing  or  High  Church  party  have  in  recent  years 
interpreted  the  Prayer  Book  in  a  Catholic  sense,  thereby 
causing  much  bitterness  and  strife  in  the  church. 

The  new  church  was  completely  subjected  to  the  state, 
the  two  institutions  henceforth  combining  to  suppress  all 
forms  of  faith  and  worship  other  than  that  authorized  by 
law.  These  regulations  obtained  for  over  a  century  and 
a  quarter.  Catholics,  Puritans,  Congregationalists,  Baptists 
and  Quakers  suffering  alike  as  illegal  and  intolerable  sec- 
taries till  toleration  was  granted  in  1689. 

§82 

PURITANISM 

Puritanism  which  was  simply  Calvinism  working  in  the 
English  church  appeared  as  early  as  the  middle  of  the 
sixteenth  century.  It  was  greatly  stimulated  by  the  return 
of  English  refugees  from  the  continent  on  the  death  of 
Mary  and  the  accession  of  Elizabeth.  Many  of  them  had 
lived  in  close  personal  contact  with  Calvin  and  his  work  at 
Geneva  and  had  imbibed  his  views.  Moreover  they  brought 
back  with  them  a  new  translation  of  the  Bible  made  at 
Geneva  and  hence  known  as  the  Geneva  version.  It  was 
an  excellent  piece  of  work,  translated  in  the  Calvinistic 
sense,  provided  with  Calvinistic  notes  and  printed  in  con- 
venient form  for  home  use.  It  became  the  Bible  of  the 
English  homes  and  undoubtedly  exerted  a  powerful  in- 
fluence for  the  spread  of  Calvinistic  convictions. 

Elizabeth  succeeded  in  keeping  Puritanism  suppressed,  but 


134  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

it  blazed  out  under  James  I.  It  demanded  purity  of  life,  a 
revision  of  the  Prayer-Book  in  the  direction  of  simplicity 
and  brevity,  freedom  of  action  about  many  of  the  ceremo- 
nies, and  a  Presbyterian  form  of  church  government.  The 
controversy  finally  precipitated  the  Civil  War  in  1642  in 
vi^hich  Charles  I  was  overthrown  and  deprived  of  his  head. 
For  a  short  while  it  looked  as  if  Puritanism  would  master 
the  government,  but  Cromwell  was  opposed  to  the  intoler- 
ance and  the  church  government  of  the  Presbyterians  and  so 
nullified  their  efforts.  On  the  accession  of  Charles  II  the 
Episcopal  church  was  reestablished  and  all  forms  of  dis- 
sent were  suppressed.  Under  the  repressive  measures  of 
the  government  Presbyterianism  disappeared  as  a  party  in 
the  state  church. 

§83 

RISE   OF   THE    INDEPENDENT    ENGLISH    DENOMINATIONS 

While  Puritanism  disappeared  from  English  life  as  a 
unified  force  it  had  made  impressions  and  sown  seeds  that 
were  destined  to  have  far  reaching  results  in  the  production 
of  independent  bodies.  Three  of  these  come  within  this 
period. 

I.  Congregationalism  was  founded  by  Robert  Browne. 
He  had  been  a  student  in  Cambridge  University  during  the 
height  of  the  agitation  aroused  by  the  Puritans.  He  had 
thus  been  forced  to  consider  questions  connected  with  the 
nature  and  government  of  the  church.  After  leaving  the 
University  he  had  visited  Holland  where  he  had  met 
Anabaptists  and  learned  something  of  their  views.  He 
then  settled  in  eastern  England  where  there  were  many 
Dutch  Anabaptists  with  some  of  whom  he  must  have  been 
acquainted.  It  was  probably  through  these  influences  that 
he  finally  reached  the  conviction  that  the  church  was  a  local 
body,  composed  entirely  of  regenerated  people,  completely 
separated  from  the  state  and  from  all  other  ecclesiastical 
bodies,  endowed  with  authority  to  perform  all  ecclesiastical 
functions  —  preaching   the    word,    administering   the    ordi- 


THE   REFORMATION  135 

nances,  disciplining  its  members,  ordaining  its  officers,  etc. — 
and  wholly  democratic  in  its  government.  He  came  to  the 
further  conclusion  that  the  English  church  could  not  be  re- 
formed and  that  it  was  sinful  to  be  longer  connected  with  it. 

Accordingly  he  separated  from  it  and  set  up  a  new 
church  at  Norwich  apparently  in  the  year  1580.  It  was 
soon  broken  up  by  the  authorities  and  Browne  fled  to  Hol- 
land where  in  a  number  of  pamphlets  he  set  forth  with 
great  force  and  clearness  the  position  which  the  Congre- 
gationalists  have  held  to  the  present  time.  Finally  he  re- 
turned to  England  and  reentered  the  state  church,  but  his 
work  was  done.  His  followers  were  long  called  Brownists 
in  derision. 

About  1587  a  second  independent  church  was  formed  in 
London  on  substantially  the  same  model.  It  too  was  broken 
up,  some  of  its  members  being  martyred  in  1593  and  others 
fleeing  to  Holland.  Still  a  third  church  was  organized  at 
Gainsborough  and  Scrooby  under  the  leadership  of  John 
Smyth  and  John  Robinson.  This  also  was  driven  to  the 
continent  and  settled  in  Holland  about  1607.  Smyth  and 
a  part  of  his  congregation  turned  Anabaptist,  while  a  part 
of  Robinson's  church  came  to  America  in  1620  in  the  May- 
flower and  founded  New  England  and  American  Congre- 
gationalism. 

Many  of  the  Congregationalist  fugitives  in  Holland  re- 
mained and  died  there;  but  in  1616  Henry  Jacob  returned 
to  London  and  began  work  there.  The  body  was  perse- 
cuted and  grew  very  slowly  until  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil 
War  in  1642  when  they  became  one  of  the  leading  factors 
of  the  national  life.  This  was  not  because  of  their  num- 
bers but  of  the  high  character  of  the  body,  of  their  principles 
of  freedom  for  which  the  English  were  struggling  at  that 
time  and  of  the  great  ability  of  some  of  their  representatives, 
the  most  notable  of  whom  were  Oliver  Cromwell  and  John 
Milton,  each  in  his  sphere  among  the  greatest  men  England 
has  produced. 

With  the  return  and  accession  of  Charles  II  they  suffered 


136  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

like  other  dissenters  until  the  adoption  of  the  Act  of  Tolera- 
tion in  1689. 

At  Plymouth,  Mass.,  some  of  Robinson's  church  founded 
Congregationalism  in  America.  They  were  joined  by  many 
thousand  Puritans  in  the  next  few  years  fleeing  from  the 
persecution  of  Archbishop  Laud,  and  falling  away  from 
their  principle  of  religious  freedom  and  separation  between 
church  and  state,  they  made  Congregationalism  the  estab- 
lished church  in  New  England  and  became  almost  as  intol- 
erant as  the  English  church  from  which  they  fled  had  been. 
Baptists  were  persecuted,  and  Quakers  were  actually  put  to 
death  on  Boston  Common. 

2.  The  English  Baptists.  As  we  have  seen,  persecution 
had  driven  some  of  the  continental  Anabaptists  to  England 
early  in  the  sixteenth  century.  They  were  being  persecuted 
by  Henry  VIII  as  early  as  1530.  They  continued  to  main- 
tain their  existence,  however,  and  some  of  the  English  may 
have  been  converted  to  their  views  inasmuch  as  some  of 
the  English  Baptist  churches  claim  to  have  originated  in 
the  sixteenth  century.  If  so  they  have  left  no  contem- 
porary evidence  of  their  existence.  The  English  Baptists 
as  a  denomination  date  their  existence  from  the  year  1611, 
and  relate  their  history  about  as  follows : 

John  Smyth  and  his  party,  as  we  have  seen,  settled  at  Am- 
sterdam in  Holland.  Here  Smyth  of  course  came  into  con- 
tact with  the  Anabaptists.  He  was  speedily  convinced  of 
the  scripturalness  of  their  position  on  at  least  two  points, 
viz.,  their  Arminian  theology  and  their  rejection  of  in- 
fant baptism.  Accordingly  he  and  about  forty  of  hil  mem- 
bers instituted  faith-baptism  and  set  up  an  English  Ana- 
baptist church  at  Amsterdam.  Smyth  soon  came  to  regard 
this  action,  which  ha3~Eieen  laken  in  entire  independence  of 
the  Anabaptists,  as  improper.  He  and  a  few  others  made 
application  for  admittance  into  the  Anabaptist  or  Mennonite 
church  and  eventually  most  of  them  were  received  and  thus 
lost  to  the  Baptist  cause.  The  larger  part  of  the  group 
stoutly  asserted  their  conviction  that  they  had  acted  properly 


THE   REFORMATION  137 

under  all  the  circumstances.  Accordingly  they  issued  a  con- 
fession of  faith  in  1611  and  about  the  same  time  returned  to 
England  under  the  leadership  of  Henry  Helwys  and  John 
Morton  to  begin  work  in  the  home  land. 

They  were  still  called  Anabaptists  and  were  bitterly  per- 
secuted. The  major  points  in  their  contention  at  this  time 
were  insistence  on  faith-baptism  with  the  rejection  of  in- 
fant-baptism, religious  freedom  for  which  they  wrote  and 
suffered  nobly,  the  saltation  of  all  infants  dying  in  infancy 
which  was  then  strenuously  denied  by  the  Calvinists,  and 
the  asseistion  that  Christ  died  for  every  mari"of~T^£neral 
atonement  ^jdiidl_was_also  denied  by  the  CaTvmists.  They 
grew  slowly  till  the  Civir~War  when  they  also  had  more 
freedom  and  opportunity.  In  1660  they  claimed  to  have 
20,000  members.  After  the  accession  of  Charles  II  they 
suffered  with  other  dissenters  till  freedom  came  with  the 
Act  of  Toleration  in  1689. 

The  group  just  discussed  were  Arminian  in  theology  and 
connectional  in  church  government.  The  English  Calvin- 
istic  or  Particular  Baptists  began  a  little  later  in  England. 
It  will  be  remembered  that  Henry  Jacob  had  returned 
from  Holland  to  England  in  1616  to  begin  a  Congrega- 
tionalist  work  in  London.  Naturally  this  group  also  had 
been  more  or  less  affected  by  the  Anabaptists  in  Hol- 
land, and  consequently  it  occasions  no  surprise  when  we 
learn  that  the  question  of  infant  baptism  was  agitated  among 
them  till  it  led  to  a  split  in  1633.  The  new  church  aban- 
doned infant  baptism  and  soon  adopted  faith-baptism.  An- 
other congregation  of  like  faith  seems  to  have  been  estab- 
lished about  1638,  and  by  1644  there  were  seven  in  Lon- 
don and  environs.  In  that  year  they  drew  up  and  published 
their  first  confession  of  faith  a  good  deal  of  which  was  taken 
from  an  earlier  Congregational  confession.  It  is  vigor- 
ously Calvinistic. 

The  Continental  Anabaptists  had  practiced  both  immer- 
sion and  other  modes  of  baptism,  but  these  English  Ana- 
baptists, as  they  were  still  called,  insisted  on  immersion 


138  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

only  and  at  least  a  part  of  them  sent  Richard  Blount  to 
Holland  to  secure  baptism  for  himself  and  them. 

The  Arminian  Baptists  were  called  General,  the  Calvin- 
istic  were  called  Particular.  They  were  agreed  in  practic- 
ing a  faith-baptism,  insisting  on  a  converted  church  mem- 
bership, separation  between  church  and  state  with  complete 
religious  freedom,  church  independence  and  democratic 
church  government,  etc.  But  they  differed  absolutely  on 
theology  and  had  no  communion  with  each  other. 

The  Calvinistic  Baptists  were  much  more  favorably  re- 
ceived by  the  English,  that  type  of  theology  being  dominant 
at  that  time  in  England.  They  grew  rapidly  during  the 
period  of  the  Civil  War  and  Cromwell's  regime,  having 
several  leaders  of  ability  and  culture  the  most  notable  of 
whom  were  William  Kiffen,  Hansard  Knollys  and  John 
Bunyan.  On  the  accession  of  Charles  they  suffered  with 
the  other  dissenters.  Bunyan  was  in  prison  for  twelve 
years  beginning  in  1660,  during  which  time  he  wrote  his 
immortal  allegory,  "  Pilgrim's  Progress." 

In  1677  a  new  and  more  elaborate  confession  was  drawn 
up  and  in  1688  formally  adopted  by  the  first  general  meeting 
of  the  Calvinistic  Baptists.  It  is  an  adaptation  of  the  West- 
minster Confession,  whole  sections  of  it  being  taken  over 
almost  without  change.  With  the  Act  of  Toleration  in  1689 
Baptists  obtained  toleration  with  other  dissenters.  There 
were  then  more  than  one  hundred  churches  in  England  and 
Wales. 

American  Baptists  originated  nearly  as  early  as  their 
English  brethren.  The  General  Baptists  seem  to  have  been 
planted  by  immigration,  but  the  first  Calvinistic  Baptists 
originated  on  the  soil  of  Rhode  Island.  Roger  Williams,  a 
Congregational  minister  of  Massachusetts,  was  banished 
from  that  colony  because  of  his  criticisms  of  the  govern- 
ment of  the  colony.  He  took  refuge  at  Providence  where 
in  1638  he  organized  an  Anabaptist  church  by  instituting 
faith-baptism  anew.  Williams  did  not  remain  in  commun- 
ion with  the  church  long,  but  it  lived  and  still  exists  as 


THE   REFORMATION  1 39 

the  First  Baptist  Church  of  Providence.  The  colony  of 
Rhode  Island  had  absolute  religious  freedom  and  separa- 
tion between  church  and  state,  the  first  government  in  the 
history  of  the  world  to  be  founded  on  that  basis.  Every- 
where else  the  Baptists  were  persecuted  exce^tjn  the  later 
Quaker  colonies.  They  grew  very  slowly,  however,  due 
to  thetf^meager  equipment  and  the  prejudice  which  they 
met  everywhere.  The  two  parties  remained  separate  in 
America  as  in  England  afid^eveloped~several  other  parties 
such  as  Seventh  Day  Baptists,  Six  "P^^'^nplp  Rnptigtg.  *r4^ 
At  the  end  of  the  period  there  were  only  a  few  thousand 
in  both  England  and  American  and  they  were  still  usually 
called  Anabaptists.  The  prefix  Ana  was  gradually  dropped 
in  the  next  period. 

3.  The  Society  of  Friends  or  Quakers  was  founded  by 
George  Fox,  an  English  Puritan  youth.  He  had  a  remark- 
able religious  experience  in  which  he  could  find  no  relief 
for  his  burdened  conscience  in  any  of  the  churches  till  he 
threw  himself  on  the  mercy  of  Christ  apart  from  all  ec- 
clesiastical ordinances.  The  glorious  truths  of  the  gospel 
were  then  "  opened  "  to  him  by  means  of  an  inner  illumina- 
tion of  the  Holy  Spirit.  Ever  afterwards  he  relied  upon 
this  "  inner  light  "  for  salvation  and  guidance.  He  rejected 
and  seemed  to  hate  the  churches,  which  he  called  "  steeple 
houses,"  because  he  believed  that  they  actually  stood  be- 
tween the  soul  and  God.  With  the  churches  he  rejected  all 
ecclesiasticism  —  baptism,  the  supper,  ordination,  prepared 
services,  dedicated  buildings,  etc.  This  meant  absolute  re- 
ligious freedom,  absolute  religious  democracy  which  put 
women  on  complete  equality  with  men  in  all  religious  duties 
and  privileges.  He  would  have  no  church  but  organized  his 
followers  into  a  society  of  friends. 

They  were  bitterly  persecuted  from  the  start  and  were 
soon  dubbed  Quakers.  It  is  estimated  that  as  many  as  14,000 
were  imprisoned  in  England  between  1650  and  1689  when 
they  also  obtained  toleration  by  the  Act  of  Toleration.  In 
the  meantime  several  hundred  had  died  in  prison. 


140  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

They  began  their  work  in  America  in  1656  and  met  the 
same  treatment  as  in  England.  Four  were  actually  hanged 
on  the  Boston  Common,  one  of  them  being  a  woman.  In 
the  early  days  they  showed  wonderful  zeal  in  preaching 
at  home  and  also  in  mission  work  abroad.  But  after  they 
obtained  peace  they  lost  their  aggressiveness  and  became  a 
retiring,  pietistic  body  who  were  highly  respectable  but 
little  influential.  In  1682  William  Penn  founded  the  great 
colony  of  Pennsylvania  on  the  basis  of  religious  freedom. 
It  was  the  most  notable  single  act  of  Quaker  history. 

They  opposed  oaths,  war,  slavery,  intemperance,  luxury, 
extravagance  in  dress,  urged  prison  reform  and  contributed 
in  other  ways  to  the  betterment  of  living  conditions. 


F.    REFORM  IN  THE  CATHOLIC  CHURCH 
§84 

DURING   THE   EARLY   DAYS    OF   THE   REFORMATION 

At  first  the  Catholic  church  seemed  to  be  stunned  by  the 
magnitude  of  the  disaster  which  was  threatening  to  over- 
whelm it,  and  did  nothing  to  stem  the  tide  that  was  setting 
so  strongly  against  it.  Luther  and  the  other  leaders  were 
excommunicated,  but  nothing  effective  was  done  to  stop 
the  movement  itself.  Had  it  not  been  for  the  activity  of 
some  of  the  Catholic  princes  of  southern  Germany  the  entire 
Teutonic  people  might  have  been  swept  out  of  the  Catholic 
church  forever.  The  Dukes  of  Bavaria  and  the  rulers  of 
the  various  Austrian  lands  forcibly  and  successfully  re- 
sisted the  introduction  of  reformatory  ideas  and  doctrines 
into  their  lands.  The  emperor  tried  unsuccessfully  to  pre- 
vent its  spread  in  other  parts  of  the  country.  As  we  have 
seen,  the  rulers  of  Italy,  France  and  Spain  succeeded  in 
suppressing  the  movement.  It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that 
it  succeeded  wherever  it  had  a  free  opportunity  and  failed 
only  where  it  was  suppressed  by  force. 


THE   REFORMATION  I4I 

§85 

THE   SOCIETY   OF   JESUS   OR   JESUITS 

One  of  the  most  fateful  events  of  this  wonderful  era 
was  the  organization  of  the  Jesuit  order.  Its  founder  was 
Ignatius  Loyola,  a  Spanish  nobleman  whose  career  as  a 
fighting  man  had  been  brought  to  an  end  by  a  gunshot 
wound  in  the  siege  of  Pampeluna  in  1523.  Unable  longer 
to  follow  the  life  of  a  soldier  he  determined  to  devote  his 
talents  to  the  service  of  the  church.  Having  obtained  some 
education  in  the  schools  of  Spain  he  became  a  student  in 
the  University  of  Paris.  While  there  he  gathered  about  him 
a  group  of  likeminded  young  men,  French  and  Spanish, 
who  bound  themselves  together  to  go  on  a  mission  to  Pales- 
tine as  soon  as  the  way  opened.  They  made  their  way  to 
Venice,  but  the  road  to  the  East  remained  closed.  As  a 
consequence  they  went  to  Rome  and  there  were  formally 
constituted  into  a  society  to  be  known  as  "  the  Society  of 
Jesus."  It  was  essentially  a  monastic  order  of  a  new  type. 
Members  were  to  be  admitted  only  after  a  rigid  examination 
and  long  preparation;  they  took  the  usual  monastic  vows 
and  in  addition  the  vow  to  go  anywhere  on  a  moment's  no- 
tice ;  they  were  to  be  thoroughly  educated  and  fitted  for 
mission  work  anywhere. 

The  organization  was  military.  There  was  a  general  at 
Rome  in  absolute  command,  with  subordinate  officers 
throughout  the  world.  The  militant  spirit  of  fighting  Span- 
ish Catholicism  was  infused  into  it  from  the  start.  Its 
weapons  were  to  be  missions,  the  confessional,  education 
and  where  necessary  the  free  use  of  force.  More  than 
one  sovereign  was  assassinated  by  them.  They  sought  to 
reach  and  influence  the  upper  military  and  ruling  classes, 
and  through  them  to  control  the  destinies  of  nations.  Al- 
most from  the  beginning  of  their  history  they  became,  as 
they  have  remained,  the  controlling  influence  in  determining 
the  policies  of  the  papacy.     It  was  largely  their  efforts  that 


142  THE    COURSE    OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

put  a  stop  to  the  progress  of  the  Reformatiorx  in  southern 
Germany  and  finally  precipitated  the  Thirty  Years  War. 
They  have  not  been  able  to  suppress  Protestantism,  as  they 
planned,  but  they  have  succeeded  in  exalting  the  papacy  to 
the  dizzy  and  blasphemous  claims  which  it  now  makes  for 
itself. 

§86 

THE    COUNCIL   OF   TRENT 

The  reformers  had  frequently  demanded  a  free  ecumenical 
council  before  which  they  could  lay  their  grievances.  The 
emperor  also  demanded  such  a  council.  It  had  been  fre- 
quently promised  but  the  pope  could  not  forget  the  unhappy 
experiences  of  his  predecessors  in  dealing  with  councils,  and 
so  constantly  found  means  for  postponing  its  call.  At  last 
the  emperor  Charles  V,  who  believed  that  a  council  could 
heal  the  Protestant  schism,  threatened  to  call  a  German  coun- 
cil to  deal  with  the  situation  unless  the  pope  acted.  To 
avoid  this  danger  the  pope  finally  very  reluctantly  called  a 
general  council  to  meet  in  the  little  city  of  Trent  in  1545. 

It  was  not  largely  attended  and  from  the  first  session  was 
completely  under  the  domination  of  the  pope.  The  Jesuit 
order  had  just  been  organized,  and  at  once  they  distinguished 
themselves  as  the  protagonists  of  the  highest  papal  preten- 
sions. In  alternate  sessions  the  council  took  up  the  work  of 
reforming  the  church  and  formulating  a  new  creed.  The 
latter  was  its  most  important  work.  It  sat  at  intervals 
from  1545  to  1563,  during  this  time  formulating  all  the  dis- 
tinctive Catholic  doctrines  except  the  dogmas  of  the  im- 
maculate conception  of  Mary  and  the  infallibility  of  the 
pope.  The  most  important  of  these  doctrines  have  been 
stated  above.  Upon  the  creed  here  drawn  up  the  Catholic 
church  still  stands.  It  contains  the  peculiar  doctrines  which 
characterize  Catholicism. 


THE   REFORMATION  I43 

§87 

CATHOLIC   GAINS 

Through  the  efforts  of  the  Jesuits,  the  activities  of  the 
inquisition  and  the  various  rehgious  wars  that  were  in- 
stigated by  the  CathoHcs  they  were  able  to  put  a  stop  to  the 
progress  of  the  Reformation  before  the  end  of  the  sixteenth 
century.  They  stamped  it  out  in  blood  in  Spain,  Italy,  the 
Austrian  lands  and  most  of  eastern  Europe.  They  made  a 
long  and  bloody  effort  in  France  but  without  complete  suc- 
cess. Ireland  and  Belgium  they  saved  for  the  Catholic 
church.  In  other  Protestant  lands  they  were  able  to  bring 
about  serious  Catholic  reactions,  but  were  never  able  to 
overthrow  Protestantism.  In  Sweden  the  queen  became 
Catholic  but  resigned  the  crown ;  in  Saxony  the  Elector  be- 
came Catholic  but  Protestantism  remained  the  religion  of 
the  people;  in  England  James  II  was  Catholic  but  he  was 
overthrown  and  the  Protestant  William  and  Mary  seated 
on  the  throne. 

But  during  this  sixteenth  century  they  won  vast  addi- 
tional territories  by  colonization.  The  West  Indies,  the 
southern  part  of  the  United  States,  Mexico,  Central  Amer- 
ica, the  whole  of  South  America  and  the  Philippine  Islands 
were  populated  by  the  Spanish  and  Portugese  Catholics. 
Moreover  for  nearly  two  centuries  it  looked  as  if  Canada 
and  the  interior  of  the  North  American  continent  would 
be  preempted  by  French  Catholics,  though  it  finally  passed 
into  Protestant  hands. 

Moreover  the  Catholics  were  filled  with  zeal  for  the  con- 
version of  the  heathen  while  the  Protestants  did  nothing 
in  this  direction  for  more  than  two  centuries.  Every  ex- 
pedition that  set  out  for  a  new  country  was  fitted  out  with 
a  religious  equipment  to  do  mission  work  among  the  na- 
tives. Vast  numbers  of  Indians  accepted  Catholicism  in  a 
nominal  sort  of  way  in  the  Americas.  Missionaries  filled 
with  fiery  zeal  like  Xavier  turned  to  the   far  East  and 


144  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

planted  flourishing  missions  in  India,  China  and  Japan. 
This  work  seemed  to  be  most  promising,  but  the  shallow- 
ness of  the  conversions  and  the  political  activities  of  the 
missionaries  eventually  brought  their  work  to  ruin  in  most 
of  their  fields  of  labor.  Ultimately  the  Catholics  had  to 
reorganize  their  work  almost  everywhere. 

§88 

INTERNAL  REFORMS 

The  stress  of  Protestant  criticism  forced  the  Catholic 
church  to  make  some  reforms.  The  sale  of  indulgences  was 
abolished,  though  the  principle  and  use  of  indulgences  was 
retained;  education  of  the  clergy  was  emphasized  and  a 
stricter  control  over  their  morals  was  established ;  preaching 
and  the  catechetical  instruction  of  children  was  materially 
enlarged  and  improved;  in  some  countries  the  Scriptures 
were  translated  into  the  vernacular  and  provided  with  Catho- 
lic notes  to  offset  the  circulation  of  the  so-called  *'  Protestant 
Bible,"  though  the  Latin  Vulgate  remained  the  "  authentic 
version  "  and  only  the  Latin  text  was  translated.  In  every 
land  where  Protestantism  is  strong  the  Catholic  church  has 
Stood  on  a  higher  level  than  in  those  lands  which  are 
Catholic.  Since  the  Reformation  there  has  been  no  pope 
of  scandalous  life  such  as  many  pre-Reformation  popes 
lived.  Monasticism  was  also  reformed  and  many  abuses 
removed.  In  short  the  Catholic  church  prepared  itself  for 
a  new  struggle  for  world  domination  under  circumstances 
more  difficult  than  it  had  ever  before  faced. 

§89 

WARS   OF   RELIGION 

On  account  of  the  close  union  between  church  and  state 
the  Reformation  became  a  political  question  in  every  land 


THE   REFORMATION  145 

into  which  it  was  introduced,  thus  creating  the  danger  of 
civil  and  international  war  over  the  whole  of  Europe.  Ac- 
tual hostilities  were  not  far  behind  the  feet  of  the  earliest 
reformers.  The  earliest  "  religious  war,"  so-called,  broke 
out  in  Switzerland  in  1529.  This  was  followed  by  a  sec- 
ond one  in  1531  in  which  Zwingli  was  killed  and  the  progress 
of  reform  in  this  country  was  brought  to  an  end. 

The  first  war  in  Germany  broke  out  in  1547.  It  was 
known  as  the  Schmalkald  War  and  was  very  short.  The 
Protestants  were  completely  defeated  by  the  Catholics  un- 
der the  emperor  and  Catholicism  was  restored  in  south  Ger- 
many. In  1 55 1  war  broke  out  again  and  this  time  the  Prot- 
estants were  victorious,  securing  the  Peace  of  Augsburg  by 
which  Lutherans  estabHshed  for  themselves  a  legal  standing 
within  the  empire. 

We  have  seen  how  France  was  torn  by  eight  civil  wars 
from  1562  to  1598.  During  the  same  period  the  provinces 
of  the  Netherlands  were  involved  in  a  struggle  in  which 
Spain  was  a  participant  and  which  eventuated  in  a  partition 
of  the  country  and  ultimately  in  the  independence  of  the 
northern  provinces  and  their  erection  into  a  new  state. 

Toward  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century  and  in  the  first 
half  of  the  seventeenth  there  were  revolts  and  attempted 
revolutions  in  many  Protestant  lands  as  a  result  of  the 
efforts  made  to  restore  Catholicism.  But  the  most  fearful 
of  all  the  wars  of  religion  was  the  Thirty  Years  War  in 
Germany.  It  broke  out  in  1618  as  a  result  of  Catholic  ef- 
forts to  overthrow  Protestantism  in  Bohemia  and  with  brief 
interruptions  lasted  till  1648  when  it  was  brought  to  an 
end  by  the  famous  Treaty  of  Westphalia.  All  Germany 
was  devastated,  France,  England,  Sweden  and  other  lands 
were  deeply  affected,  Catholicism  was  restored  in  eastern 
and  southern  Germany.  Catholics  suffered,  however,  al- 
most as  much  as  the  Protestants  and  in  the  end  were  com- 
pelled to  acknowledge  that  they  could  not  suppress  the 
Protestant  movement. 

By  the  Peace  of  Westphalia  two  new  and  independent 


146  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

Protestant  states  were  created,  Switzerland  and  the  Nether- 
lands or  Holland;  Calvinism  was  recognized  as  a  legal  re- 
ligion beside  Lutheranism ;  in  the  possession  of  church  prop- 
erty Jan.  I,  1624,  was  recognized  as  the  "  normal  year," 
that  is  those  who  held  a  piece  of  property  on  Jan.  i,  1624, 
were  confirmed  in  its  possession  thus  putting  Protestants 
in  permanent  possession  of  enormous  quantities  of  property ; 
finally  the  prince  was  still  recognized  as  the  arbiter  of  re- 
ligion, that  is  the  religion  of  the  prince  must  be  accepted  as 
the  religion  of  the  people. 

The  pope  rejected  the  treaty,  stormed  at  and  anathema- 
tized its  framers  but  all  to  no  purpose.  The  efifort  to 
suppress  Protestantism  by  force  had  failed  and  the  Catholic 
powers  were  ready  to  acknowledge  that  fact.  Never  since 
that  day  has  the  pope  played  any  important  part  in  inter- 
national politics.  Catholic  and  Protestant  powers  have 
lived  as  good  neighbors,  have  made  war  and  concluded 
treaties  without  asking  his  advice  or  consent. 


§90 

EXPANSION    OF    CHRISTIANITY   THROUGH    COLONIZATION 

Up  till  the  beginning  of  this  period  Christianity  was  al- 
most confined  to  Europe.  It  had  once  been  the  religion  of 
North  Africa  but  Mohammedanism  had  stamped  it  out 
there.  It  still  existed  in  western  Asia,  but  under  the  heel 
of  the  Mohammedan  Turks  it  had  lost  all  power  and  sig- 
nificance. Cut  off  from  other  peoples  by  the  ocean  on 
the  west  and  by  the  Mohammedans  on  the  east  Christianity 
had  spread  but  little  for  several  centuries,  missions  had 
almost  ceased. 

The  discoveries  of  the  Spanish  and  Portuguese  opened  up 
a  new  world  into  which  Christianity  was  not  slow  to  enter. 
These  discoveries  led  to  the  exploration,  exploitation  and 
settlement  of  vast  areas  of  land  hitherto  unknown,  carrying 


THE   REFORMATION  I47 

Christianity  with  settlers  and  extending  it  among  the  natives 
by  missions. 

The  Spanish  and  Portuguese  at  once  began  attempts  at 
conquests  and  colonization.  They  carried  their  religion 
with  them  and  as  a  consequence  all  of  America  south  of 
the  United  States  is  now  solidly  Spanish  and  Portuguese 
Catholic.  They  also  took  possession  of  the  Philippine 
Islands  and  made  them  Catholic.  A  little  later  the  French 
Catholics  took  possession  of  the  region  around  the  St. 
Lawrence  and  the  Great  Lakes  and  planted  Catholicism 
there. 

The  Protestant  powers  were  much  slower  in  their  efiforts 
at  colonization.  More  than  a  century  after  the  discovery  of 
America,  Protestants  made  their  first  permanent  settle- 
rnent  at  Jamestown  in  Virginia.  Gradually  the  middle  por- 
tion of  the  eastern  coast  of  North  America  was  occupied  by 
the  various  nationalities  and  types  of  Protestantism  at  that 
time  in  Europe.  Later  Australia  and  New  Zealand  were 
discovered  and  settled  by  Protestants,  almost  exclusively 
English.  In  like  manner  South  Africa  was  populated  by 
the  Dutch  Protestants  and  later  by  the  English.  At  first 
the  various  Protestant  parties  in  North  America  were  hostile 
to  each  other,  but  gradually  they  consolidated  or  otherwise 
eliminated  friction,  and  eventually  most  of  them  passed 
under  the  dominion  of  the  English. 

Thus  not  only  Europeans  but  European  religious  parties 
were  planted  in  all  the  new  lands  which  were  held  by  sav- 
age or  barbarous  peoples.  By  this  means  the  territory  of 
the  Caucasian  stock  and  the  Christian  religion  was  enorm- 
ously enlarged.  The  new  territory  was  ultimately  divided 
almost  equally  between  the  Roman  Catholics  and  the  Prot- 
estants, the  Spanish  and  the  Portuguese  being  the  leaders 
of  the  Catholics  and  the  English  being  the  leaders  of  the 
Protestants. 

Before  the  end  of  this  period  Russia  had  begun  that 
wonderful  period  of  expansion  which  has  carried  her  peo- 
ple entirely  across  northern  Asia.     With  them   went  the 


148  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

Greek  Catholic  church  so  that  all  northern  Asia  is  now 
Greek  Catholic.  Not  only  did  the  Russians  remain  loyal  to 
this  faith,  but  they  also  converted  many  of  the  natives  to 
the  same  faith.  This  territory  constitutes  the  sole  impor- 
tant gains  made  by  the  Greek  church  since  its  separation 
from  the  Roman  Catholic  church  in  1054.  But  this  ex- 
pansion constitutes  enormous  gains  in  territory  and  num- 
bers. 


EIGHTH  PERIOD— 1648  TO  1789 
§91 

INTRODUCTION 

From  the  Reformation  to  the  present  it  is  almost  impossible 
to  present  the  vast  and  complex  material  in  a  form  that 
will  at  once  be  clear  and  comprehensible  and  at  the  same 
time  show  the  progress  of  events.  The  unity  of  Christian- 
ity is  gone.  In  its  place  has  arisen  division  and  strife  not 
only  between  Catholics  and  Protestants  but  among  the  vari- 
ous Protestant  parties  themselves.  The  numerous  Protes- 
tant bodies  have  been  continually  multiplied  by  new  schisms. 
This  has  been  especially  true  of  English  Christianity  where 
there  was  originally  less  consistency  and  more  freedom. 
Christianity  has  been  paying  a  high  price  for  liberty,  but  time 
has  proven  that  the  blessings  of  liberty  are  worth  all  the 
cost. 

§92 

RISE  OF   SKEPTICISM 

The  great  body  of  the  Reformers  had  broken  away  from 
the  Catholic  church  without,  however,  weakening  the  prin- 
ciple of  authority  in  religion.  In  the  room  of  an  infallible 
church  they  asserted  an  infallible  Bible.  At  first  the  right 
of  private  judgment  in  the  interpretation  of  that  Book  had 
been  claimed ;  but  in  a  short  time  the  principle  of  tradition 
had  reasserted  its  power,  leading  to  the  formulation  of 
creeds  that  must  be  accepted  under  civil  and  religious  penal- 
ties. Intolerance  became  almost  as  inflexible  and  savage  in 
Protestant  as  in  Catholic  lands.  Only  the  Socinii  of  north- 
ern Italy  and  their  followers  had  shown  any  tendency  to 

149 


150  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

break  away  from  the  old  orthodox  creeds,  and  they  were 
but  a  small  and  uninfluential  party. 

But  by  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century  the  world 
had  become  unutterably  weary  of  theological  strife  and  re- 
ligious wars.  Men  began  to  think  that  religion,  and  espe- 
cially the  Christian  religion,  was  the  cause  of  all  their  woes. 
If  people  would  only  reject  these  superstitions,  they  said, 
and  live  by  reason  we  should  have  a  new  world  in  which 
peace  and  brotherhood  would  reign.  The  principles  of 
church  authority,  credal  authority  and  scriptural  authority 
must  be  thrown  aside  that  men  might  live  by  the  light  of 
human  reason.  It  was  the  age  of  Rationalism,  reasonable- 
ness, "  illumination."  As  it  came  on  its  advocates  thought 
they  were  ushering  in  a  golden  age,  free  from  superstition 
and  ignorance,  blessed  with  peace  and  enlightenment.  How 
little  we  can  know  in  advance  of  the  fruits  of  our  actions ! 

Skepticism  took  many  different  forms.  Among  them  was 
Deism,  a  view  of  God  which  practically  banished  him  from 
the  universe.  He  was  supposed  to  have  created  and  set 
it  in  motion,  but  he  now  exercised  over  it  no  providential 
control.  This  completely  nullified  the  fundamental  as- 
sumptions of  religion  itself.  Much  was  said  about  natural 
religion,  which  was  supposed  to  be  religion  reduced  to  its 
lowest  terms  —  belief  in  the  existence  and  holiness  of  God, 
in  the  obligation  to  righteousness,  in  the  immortality  of  the 
soul,  in  future  rewards  and  punishments.  This  was  good 
as  far  as  it  went,  but  it  made  belief  in  revelation  and  in 
the  distinctive  doctrines  of  Christianity  impossible.  Arian- 
ism  and  Socinianism  minimized  the  person  and  work  of 
Jesus  Christ  in  such  a  way  as  to  regard  him  as  little  more 
than  a  good  teacher  and  example. 

This  skepticism,  begun  in  England  as  Deism,  spread  to 
France  where  it  became  so  powerful  as  to  control  for  years 
almost  the  whole  of  the  literary  and  intellectual  life  of  the 
nation.  Thence  it  passed  into  Germany  where  it  became 
almost  as  strong  as  in  France.  The  whole  of  Hfe  was 
rationalized  —  churchy  state  and  social  life. 


1648   TO    1789  151 

During  the  latter  half  of  the  eighteenth  century  the  same 
views  of  religion,  brought  to  America  by  British  and  French 
officers,  deeply  affected  our  own  intellectual  and  religious 
life.  Our  schools  and  many  of  our  pulpits  were  full  of 
French  infidelity.  In  France  Voltaire  and  in  America  Tom 
Paine  were  the  popular  representatives  of  this  type  of  think- 
ing. 

As  was  to  be  expected  under  these  conditions  the  most 
serious  religious  and  moral  decay  began  all  over  the  Chris- 
tian world.  Religious  fervor  cooled,  evangelical  elements 
were  eliminated  from  song  and  worship  generally,  the  evan- 
gelical note  disappeared  from  preaching,  religion  became 
purely  formal  and  intellectual.  Even  those  who  retained 
their  orthodox  theological  beliefs  lost  the  vitality  of  their 
message,  becoming  mere  theological  debaters. 

Along  with  this  decay  of  faith  went  a  rapid  decline  in 
morals.  Vice,  drunkenness,  gambling,  robbery  and  all  other 
forms  of  evil  living  were  so  terrible  that  many  good  men 
despaired  of  the  race.  It  was  a  common  opinion  that  Chris- 
tianity was  on  its  last  legs ;  soon  all  religion  would  be  dead 
and  then  men  would  be  left  free  to  live  according  to  rea- 
son, that  is  as  their  whims  and  passions  might  dictate. 
These  conditions  with  variations  prevailed  in  both  Europe 
and  America. 


§93 

DECLINE   OF   THE    PROTESTANT   DENOMINATIONS 

Under  the  influence  of  the  prevalent  conditions  it  was  to 
be  expected  that  the  individual  churches  and  denominations 
would  show  serious  decline.  The  state  churches,  notwith- 
standing the  security  of  their  position,  languished.  The 
two  extremes  of  a  dry  and  lifeless  theological  orthodoxy 
and  a  cold  and  paralyzing  rationalism  sapped  these  churches 
of  all  vital  piety  and  active  benevolence. 

The  free  churches  of  England  and  America  were  in  little 


152  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

better  condition.  Congregationalists,  Baptists,  Quakers  and 
all  others  suffered.  In  England  the  majority  of  the  Gen- 
eral Baptists  became  Socinian  while  the  Calvinistic  wing  de- 
veloped a  hyper-Calvinistic  theology  which  was  fatal  to 
all  Christian  effort.  Among  American  Baptists  the  same 
two  tendencies  were  operative,  especially  the  latter  which 
is  to  have  such  fateful  results  in  the  anti-mission,  anti-ef- 
fort views  of  the  next  period.  Unitarian  views,  which  ap- 
peared among  the  Congregationalists  and  Quakers,  are  to 
become  a  serious  menace  to  the  existence  of  these  bodies 
in  the  next  period.  Lutherans,  Reformed  and  others  on 
the  continent,  shared  the  same  general  experience. 

Toward  the  end  of  the  period  all  parties  began  to  feel 
the  refreshing  effects  of  the  great  evangelical  revival  which 
was  sweeping  over  the  English  speaking  world.  The  mem- 
bership of  the  churches  began  to  increase  in  numbers,  their 
piety  became  more  fervent  and  actively  benevolent,  their 
standards  of  living  higher. 

§94 

THE    CATHOLIC    CHURCH    SUFFERS   DECLINE 

It  was  not  alone  the  Protestant  churches  and  denomina- 
tions that  suffered  from  the  growth  of  Rationalism.  The 
Catholic  church  was  also  greatly  weakened. 

I.  In  France  there  was  serious  friction  between  the  gov- 
ernment and  the  church  of  France  on  one  side  and  the 
papacy  on  the  other,  during  much  of  this  period.  Louis 
XIV  (1643-1715)  was  especially  determined  to  control  the 
French  church,  and  in  this  effort  he  was  supported  by  the 
church  itself.  The  struggle  was  carried  to  such  lengths  that 
the  French  bishops  in  1682,  under  the  leadership  of  the 
famous  scholar  and  bishop  Bossuet,  drew  up  a  statement 
which  was  virtually  a  "  declaration  of  independence  "  and 
which  has  been  called  the  *'  Gallican  Liberties."  It  was  de- 
clared that  the  power  of  the  pope  is  confined  to  spiritual 


1648   TO    1789  153 

matters,  that  the  seat  of  final  authority  is  in  the  Council  not 
the  pope,  that  even  in  spiritual  matters  the  pope's  authority 
is  limited  by  the  canons  and  the  ecclesiastical  customs  of 
France  and  that  the  pope's  judgment  is  not  irreversible.  A 
few  years  later,  however,  these  views  were  rescinded. 

There  was  also  a  revival  of  the  evangelical  views  of 
Augustine  in  the  French  church.  It  was  known  as  Jansen- 
ism and  for  a  time  gave  the  ecclesiastical  authorities  much 
trouble.  Many  of  the  leading  literary  men  of  France  were, 
either  because  of  Rationalism  or  a  more  evangelical  faith, 
opposed  to  the  Catholic  church.  During  the  first  half  of 
the  eighteenth  century  France  had  a  number  of  great  Cath- 
olic preachers,  in  fact  some  of  the  greatest  preachers  that 
the  Catholic  church  has  ever  produced.  The  most  notable 
were  Bossuet  d.  1704,  Bourdaloue  d.  1704,  Fenelon  d.  171 5 
and  Massillon  d.  1742.  But  by  the  end  of  the  period  faith 
had  almost  perished  from  the  French  people,  a  condition  of 
unbelief  from  which  they  have  never  yet  recovered. 

2.  In  Austria  free  thought  advanced  so  far  that  the  Em- 
peror Joseph  II  ( 1 780-1 790)  introduced  sweeping  reforms 
into  that  intolerant  and  priest-ridden  country.  He  granted 
toleration  to  Protestants,  prohibited  appeals  to  the  pope, 
suppressed  pilgrimages,  religious  processions  and  many  of 
the  monasteries,  forbade  the  publication  of  papal  communi- 
cations till  they  were  approved  by  the  government,  etc. 
Finally  a  gathering  of  German  clergy  called  the  "  Congress 
of  Ems  "  took  steps  looking  toward  the  severance  of  the 
German  Catholic  church  from  the  papacy.  So  threatening 
did  the  situation  appear  that  the  pope  journeyed  all  the  way 
to  Vienna  in  an  effort  to  avoid  the  disaster. 

Unfortunately  all  these  struggles  were  more  the  result 
of  rationalistic  skepticism  than  of  evangelical  faith  and  so 
soon  came  to  naught.  Rationalism  had  the  power  of  de- 
stroying, but  could  supply  little  that  was  constructive  and 
able  to  meet  the  religious  needs  of  men. 

3.  Suppression  of  the  Jesuits.  As  we  have  seen  the 
Jesuits,  on  account  of  their  organization,  their  esprit  du 


154  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

corps  and  their  splendid  educational  equipment,  exercised 
an  immense  influence  over  the  fortunes  of  the  papacy  and 
the  destinies  of  the  European  countries.  This  influence  be- 
came so  great  in  the  church  and  the  order  meddled  so 
continually  and  in  such  obnoxious  ways  in  the  affairs  of 
civil  governments  that  Catholic  ecclesiastical  and  civil  au- 
thorities united  in  a  demand  for  the  suppression  of  the 
order.  They  were  banished  from  Portugal  in  1759,  from 
France  in  1762,  from  Spain  and  her  possessions  and  from 
Naples,  Parma  and  Piacenza  in  1767  and  were  finally  sup- 
pressed and  dissolved  by  the  pope  in  1773.  Free  thought 
thus  scored  one  of  its  greatest  triumphs. 

§95 

ELEMENTS   OF   GAIN    IN   THIS    PERIOD 

It  would,  however,  be  a  grave  mistake  to  suppose  that 
the  results  of  this  period  were  altogether  evil.  On  the 
contrary  there  were  mighty  gains  which  have  permanently 
enriched  the  life  of  the  world.  Freedom  is  a  dangerous 
possession  to  those  who  have  not  learned  how  to  use  it, 
but  it  is  a  precious  treasure  nevertheless.  This  is  the  period 
in  which  the  world  was  gaining  its  freedom  and  learning 
how  to  use  it.  Naturally  there  were  excesses  and  mistakes. 
But  there  were  gains  also. 

I.  In  this  period  much  of  the  world  gained  its  intellectual 
freedom,  gained  for  the  individual  the  right  to  think  for 
himself  without  danger  from  the  state  or  the  church. 
Man  broke  away  from  the  tyranny  of  creeds  and  confes- 
sions and  ecclesiastical  organizations  and  began  to  seek  for 
the  truth  for  himself.  He  created  a  philosophy  entirely  in- 
dependent of  the  church,  he  criticized  the  church,  its  creeds, 
its  ministry,  its  worship,  its  theology  and  even  its  Bible. 
Superstitions,  errors  and  wrongs  that  were  hoary  with  age 
were  melted  in  the  fierce  heat  of  this  crucible  and  dis- 
appeared forever.     Unfortunately  men  sometimes  went  too 


1648  TO  1789  155 

far  and  attacked  things  that  were  true  and  essential,  but  such 
things  were  safe  and  the  gain  was  indisputable. 

2.  Political  freedom.  In  this  period  the  long  and  bitter 
struggle  for  political  freedom  was  begun.  The  remnants 
of  feudalism  were  abolished  and  all  men  attained  to  equality 
before  the  law.  The  American  colonies  succeeded  in  break- 
ing the  galling  yoke  of  the  mother  country,  and  set  up  a 
government  by  the  people  and  for  the  people,  a  repubhc. 
Kings  and  princes  began  to  be  limited  by  constitutions ;  not 
the  will  of  the  prince  but  the  will  of  the  people  was  to  be  the 
law  of  the  land  for  the  future.  This  was  an  unspeakable 
gain  whose  fruits  have  as  yet  not  all  been  gathered. 

3.  Religious  freedom.  From  time  immemorial  religion 
and  the  state  had  been  united.  *'  Throne  and  altar  "  had 
often  been  allied  against  the  people  who  between  the  two 
had  suffered  the  most  horrible  treatment.  For  the  first 
time  in  human  history  Roger  Williams  set  up  in  the  colony 
of  Rhode  Island  in  1638  a  government  under  which  abso- 
lute religious  freedom  was  guaranteed  so  long  as  its  exer- 
cise did  not  disturb  public  order.  The  established  churches 
of  the  other  colonies  were  attacked  during  the  latter  half  of 
the  eighteenth  century,  an  effort  which  eventuated  in  the 
adoption  of  a  federal  constitution  which  guaranteed  reli- 
gious freedom  and  secured  the  disestablishment  of  the  vari- 
ous churches  in  Virginia,  Massachusetts  and  other  states. 

From  this  beginning  the  movement  looking  toward  reli- 
gious freedom  has  spread  until  religious  toleration  is  en- 
joyed in  nearly  all  lands  and  the  work  of  disestablishment  is 
going  steadily  forward,  giving  absolute  equality  before  the 
law  to  all  forms  of  religious  belief  and  practice.  Indica- 
tions are  that  another  hundred  years  wiU  see  complete  dis- 
establishment the  world  over. 

4.  Popular  education.  The  education  of  the  Middle  Ages 
had  been  aristocratic.  No  attempt  had  been  made  to  edu- 
cate all  the  people;  as  a  rule  only  churchmen  and  the 
nobility  had  been  educated.  Luther  and  other  reformers 
had  begun  a  movement  for  general  education  supported  by 


156  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

the  State.  During  the  rationaHstic  period  of  the  eighteenth 
century  this  movement  began  to  be  reaUzed.  The  rational- 
ists were  generally  democratic  in  their  feelings,  believing  in 
the  dignity  and  rights  of  the  people.  Naturally  they  favored 
the  education  of  the  people. 

Along  with  the  diffusion  of  education  came  the  freedom  of 
the  press  and  the  right  of  public  assembly  and  open  discus- 
sion. These  are  among  the  most  valued  blessings  of  our 
day,  the  most  tremendous  safeguards  of  liberty  and  justice 
possessed  by  the  modern  world. 

§96 

EVANGELICAL   REVIVALS 

The  lamp  of  evangelical  truth  and  life  seemed  for  a  time 
to  be  flickering  towards  extinction,  but  it  was  only  dimmed, 
not  quenched.  In  due  time  it  would  again  be  placed  on  the 
lampstand  to  shine  with  new  splendor  and  power.  The 
night  of  skepticism  and  moral  decay  was  the  precursor  of 
the  most  splendid  day  in  the  history  of  Christianity.  This 
day  began  with  the  revivals  of  the  seventeenth  and  eight- 
eenth centuries. 

I.  The  German  rezival.  The  earliest  of  these  revivals 
was  in  Germany  and  is  known  as  Pietism.  Its  leader  was 
Philip  J.  Spener,  a  highly  cultured  pastor,  who  began  the 
work  of  reform  in  the  city  of  Frankfort  on  the  Main  about 
1666.  He  turned  away  from  the  prevalent  theological  type 
of  preaching  to  simple,  practical,  vital  sermons,  intended  to 
reach  and  bless  the  lives  of  the  people.  He  encouraged 
Bible  study,  stimulated  the  activities  of  the  laymen,  empha- 
sized the  necessity  for  a  religious  experience,  for  a  con- 
verted and  educated  ministry,  for  practical  reforms. 

Spener's  ability  and  culture  recommended  his  views  to  the 
cultured  circles  of  Germany,  but  the  official  church  was 
usually  bitterly  opposed  to  his  views  and  his  practical  meas- 
ures.    It  was  felt  to  be  a  depreciation  of  the  church  and  its 


1648    TO    1789  157 

sacraments,  of  the  pastoral  office,  and  to  be  dangerous  to 
good  order  and  religion.  Some  of  the  young  professors 
who  embraced  Spener's  views  were  driven  out  of  the  faculty 
of  the  University  of  Leipsic.  They  proceeded  at  once  to 
found  the  University  of  Halle  upon  the  basis  of  Spener's 
teachings.  In  connection  with  this  new  school,  A.  H. 
Francke  founded  the  famous  Halle  Orphan  House,  one  of 
the  most  noted  homes  for  orphan  children  in  the  world  and 
the  beginning  of  such  work  among  Protestants. 

Unfortunately  Spener's  movement  lacked  popular  support. 
It  was  almost  confined  to  university  and  cultured  circles  and 
so  never  took  firm  hold  upon  the  life  of  the  German  people. 
Soon  after  the  end  of  the  century  that  gave  it  birth  it  was 
stifled  by  the  rising  tide  of  Rationalism  which  was  sweep- 
ing over  the  world.  It  left  few  traces  behind  it,  and  Ger- 
many has  had  no  real  revival  since. 

2.  The  American  revival.  Moral  and  religious  conditions 
in  the  American  colonies  were  aggravated  by  the  isolation 
of  the  people  and  the  hard  conditions  of  frontier  Hfe.  Un- 
doubtedly the  decline  was  most  serious,  the  old  piety  was 
well-nigh  gone.  The  downward  tendency  was  stopped  by 
the  "  Great  Awakening,"  which  began  in  Northampton, 
Mass.,  under  the  preaching  of  Jonathan  Edwards,  pastor  of 
the  Congregational  church  at  that  place.  Edwards  was  one 
of  the  ablest  thinkers  that  America  has  yet  produced,  saintly 
in  life,  earnest  and  searching  in  his  preaching.  In  the 
midst  of  his  regular  ministrations  there  broke  out  a  great 
revival,  which  swept  over  most  of  the  colonies  with  markedly 
beneficial  effects  on  the  whole  life  of  the  colonies,  both  pub- 
He  and  private.  It  was  taken  up  by  other  and  less  notable 
men,  thousands  were  converted,  many  of  the  old  churches 
were  revived,  some  of  them  were  split  by  the  new  wine  of 
spiritual  life,  new  evangelistic  churches  were  founded. 

The  movement  was  strengthened  by  the  work  of  George 
Whitefield,  the  great  English  evangelist,  who  made  many 
evangelizing  tours  of  the  country  and  spread  the  good  news 
of  the  gospel  from  one  end  of  the  land  to  the  other.     In  all, 


158  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

he  visited  this  country  seven  times  and  finally  died  here  in 

1773- 

3.  The  British  revival.  About  the  beginning  of  the 
eighteenth  century  England  was  in  a  most  distressing  state 
of  moral  and  religious  decay.  Life  was  unspeakably  gross 
and  evangelical  faith  seemed  to  be  dead.  Out  of  these  con- 
ditions arose  an  evangelical  revival  which  changed  the  whole 
tone  of  life  and  doubtless  saved  the  country  from  the  hor- 
rors of  a  catastrophe  similar  to  the  French  Revolution, 
which  burst  upon  the  world  at  the  close  of  the  century. 
The  leading  instruments  in  the  hands  of  God  in  the  promo- 
tion of  this  revival  were  John  and  Charles  Wesley  and 
George  Whitefield.  They  were  all  Oxford  men,  the  Wes- 
leys  coming  out  of  the  Episcopal  rectory  of  Epworth,  and 
Whitefield  being  the  son  of  an  inn-keeper.  While  in  the 
University  they  had  formed,  among  the  students,  an  organ- 
ization for  the  cultivation  of  the  religious  life  which  had 
earned  the  title  of  "  The  Holy  Club  "  from  their  fellow-stu- 
dents, who  had  also  called  them  "  Methodists,"  on  account 
of  their  methodical  devotion  to  their  university  duties. 

All  three  were  ordained  to  the  ministry  of  the  English 
church,  of  which  they  were  members.  But  about  the  year 
1737  they  were  all,  each  in  his  own  way,  converted  and  led 
to  a  much  more  evangelical  position  than  that  held  by  the 
English  church.  Their  preaching  soon  became  so  emo- 
tional, vigorous  and  vital  as  to  render  them  obnoxious  to 
the  authorities  of  their  church.  Being  excluded  from  the 
churches  they  began  to  preach  in  the  open  air  and  in  rented 
halls,  always  at  hours  other  than  those  at  which  the  services 
of  the  church  were  held.  They  were  striving  to  remain 
good  Anglicans. 

They  preached  a  glad,  emotional  gospel,  full  of  song  and 
movement,  free  to  all  men,  with  assurance  based  upon  expe- 
rience. John  Wesley  and  Whitefield  were  great  preachers, 
while  Charles  was  a  notable  hymn-writer  and  singer.  Soon 
there  were  hosts  of  converts.  These  Wesley,  who  was  a 
marvelously   gifted   organizer,   gathered   into   societies   for 


1648   TO    1789  159 

the  cultivation  of  the  spiritual  life  and  the  propagation  of 
the  gospel.  The  societies  were  divided  into  classes,  under 
the  direction  of  class  leaders,  who  were  responsible  for  their 
moral  and  religious  instruction  and  spiritual  welfare.  Care- 
ful supervision  and  instruction  were  thus  established  to 
conserve  and  supplement  itinerant  evangelism.  These  local 
leaders  were  laymen  and  women,  while  the  few  ministers 
who  were  converted  to  his  views,  along  with  some  laymen, 
were  given  oversight  over  a  number  of  these  societies  in  a 
circuit  and  thus  became  circuit-riders.  In  1744  the  first 
conference  of  the  preachers  was  held  in  London,  thereafter 
becoming  the  Annual  Conference.  Wesley,  at  this  time,  had 
no  thought  of  founding  a  new  church ;  his  only  purpose  was 
the  creation  of  an  organization  which  would  conserve  and 
propagate  his  revival  movement.  The  Wesleyan  type  of 
piety  came  from  the  Moravians  through  Wesley's  personal 
contact  with  that  organization  in  London,  the  ritual  and 
some  other  features  were  derived  from  the  Anglican 
church,  the  organisation  arose  out  of  the  exigencies  of  the 
movement  reacted  upon  by  Wesley's  organizing  genius. 

The  organization  of  the  Methodists  into  a  body  inde- 
pendent of  the  Episcopal  church  took  place  in  America  in 
1784,  while  their  separation  from  the  mother  church  in 
England  did  not  occur  till  after  Wesley's  death  in  1791. 
The  movement  thus  ultimately  gave  rise  to  a  new  denom- 
ination, but  the  whole  religious  life  of  Great  Britain,  as 
represented  in  all  denominations,  was  greatly  quickened  and 
elevated  by  the  Methodist  movement.  By  the  end  of  the 
century,  skepticism  had  largely  passed  away,  moral  life  was 
much  improved  and  the  mighty  modern  foreign  mission 
movement  was  at  the  birth.  Never  since  these  revivals  has 
the  religious  and  moral  life  of  the  English-speaking  world 
sunk  back  to  its  former  low  level. 


l60  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

§97 
BEGINNINGS   OF   PROTESTANT    MISSIONS 

The  Catholics  had  never  ceased  to  engage  in  mission  work 
even  in  the  midst  of  the  storm  of  the  Reformation.  For  a 
time  they  had  been  very  successful  in  India,  China  and 
Japan,  enrolling  thousands  of  converts.  But  the  work  was 
superficial,  and  the  missionaries  meddled  with  the  govern- 
ments and  quarreled  among  themselves.  As  a  consequence 
further  work  in  these  lands  was  forbidden,  the  missionaries 
were  banished  and  Christianity  almost  perished.  They 
were,  however,  still  making  progress  in  Central  and  South 
America. 

On  the  other  hand  the  Protestants  were  just  making  a 
beginning  of  foreign  mission  work  in  this  period.  In  all 
cases  their  earliest  efforts  were  in  connection  with  colonial 
enterprises,  for  the  colonists  and  the  natives  in  the  colonies. 
Before  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century  a  few  Dutch 
in  the  East  Indies  and  two  or  three  English  in  America  had 
made  some  effort  to  evangelize  the  natives,  the  earliest  in 
America  being  Roger  Williams.  These  were  the  efforts 
of  individuals  and  amounted  to  little. 

But  early  in  the  eighteenth  century  concerted  effort  began 
in  Germany  for  the  propagation  of  the  gospel  in  foreign 
lands.  Frederick  IV,  king  of  Denmark  which  had  colonies 
in  both  the  East  and  the  West  Indies,  became  deeply  inter- 
ested in  the  preaching  of  the  gospel  in  connection  with  these 
enterprises.  Unable  to  find  Danish  preachers  who  would  go 
two  Germans  from  Halle  were  sent  out  to  Tranquebar  in 
the  East  Indies  in  1705.  This  mission,  supported  by  the 
government  of  Denmark  but  manned  by  German  mission- 
aries and  hence  known  as  the  '*  Danish-Halle  Mission," 
flourished  for  nearly  a  century  till  the  growing  Rationalism 
destroyed  its  home  support.  Many  missionaries  were  sent 
out  and  for  a  time  beginning  in  1710  a  missionary  magazine 
was  published,  the  first  of  its  kind. 


1648  TO  1789  161 

There  was  organized  in  1727  on  the  estates  of  Count 
Zinzendorf  in  the  heart  of  Germany  the  Unitas  Fratrum  or 
"  United  Brethren."  The  organization  was  composed  of 
fragments  of  persecuted  peoples  from  various  parts  of 
Europe,  remarkable  for  their  piety  and  their  steadfast  devo- 
tion to  principle.  Under  the  guidance  of  Zinzendorf  they 
decided  in  1728  to  undertake  foreign  mission  work  and  in 
1732  they  sent  their  first  missionary  to  the  West  Indies. 
Soon  their  missionaries  were  to  be  found  in  many  lands.  In 
general  they  have  chosen  the  most  difficult  and  neglected 
fields  of  the  world.  No  other  organization  of  Christians 
in  the  whole  history  of  Christianity  have  exhibited  equal 
devotion  and  sacrifice  to  the  cause  of  foreign  missions. 


NINTH  PERIOD— 1789  TO  1917 

A.     GENERAL  CHARACTERISTICS  OF  THE 
PERIOD 

§98 

THE   POLITICAL   HISTORY 

Judged  from  any  standpoint  the  last  is  the  most  glorious 
period  of  Christian  history.  In  many  respects  the  world 
made  more  progress  in  the  brief  span  of  this  period  than  in 
all  previous  ages  combined.  Moreover  life  became  ever 
more  and  more  complex  as  ease  and  rapidity  of  communica- 
tion and  transportation  brought  the  nations  v^ith  all  their 
manifold  divergences  into  more  intimate  and  continuous 
contact.  Only  the  most  important  features  of  this  v^on- 
derful  age  can  be  noticed  and  these  only  in  a  brief  and  in- 
adequate way. 

The  peoples  of  the  world  have  made  marked  political 
progress  during  this  period.  The  points  of  change  and 
improvement  have  been  so  many  and  important  as  to  defy 
description  in  the  brief  space  that  is  here  available.  Only 
the  most  significant  features  will  be  mentioned. 

I.  Constitutional  government  has  been  established  in  ev- 
ery civilized  land,  though  in  a  somewhat  rudimentary  form 
in  Russia  and  some  other  countries.  Only  England  and 
the  United  States  were  governed  by  constitutions  at  the 
beginning  of  the  period,  and  the  American  government,  still 
in  its  infancy,  was  regarded  as  an  experiment.  To-day  all 
civilized  peoples  have   succeeded   in   protecting  themselves 

162 


GENERAL    CHARACTERISTICS   OF   THE    LAST    PERIOD       1 63 

from  the  capricious  and  arbitrary  will  of  their  rulers  by  a 
statement  of  fundamental  law  which  all  are  bound  to  ob- 
serve. 

2.  The  Republic  as  a  form  of  government  has  made 
wonderful  strides.  At  the  beginning  of  the  period  the 
United  States  and  Switzerland  were  the  only  two  govern- 
ments in  the  world  that  were  in  any  sense  republican.  Now 
all  the  new  countries  of  the  Western  Hemisphere  are  re- 
publican while  the  old  world  kingdoms  of  France  and  China 
and  Russia  have  adopted  that  form  of  government,  and  all 
the  others  have  been  compelled  to  give  to  their  subjects 
almost  as  much  freedom  as  if  they  were  republics. 

3.  hiternal  democracy.  Within  the  nations  there  has 
gone  on  a  constant  development  of  democracy.  The  people 
have  wrenched  from  their  rulers  and  the  upper  classes  an 
ever  increasing  share  in  the  actual  processes  of  govern- 
ment. Cabinets  and  advisers  have  been  made  responsible 
to  the  people,  lower  officials  have  been  made  elective ;  the 
right  of  suffrage  has  been  extended  in  many  countries  to 
include  all  men  over  twenty-one,  and  the  women  are  rapidly 
winning  the  right  to  vote.  The  right  of  all  the  people  to 
be  represented  is  a  principle  which  is  now  firmly  embedded 
in  the  political  thinking  of  the  world. 

4.  Colonisation.  Russia  continued  to  expand  until  the 
whole  of  northern  Asia  is  now  in  her  possession  and  she 
has  ports  on  the  Pacific.  England  continues  to  hold  and  ex- 
ploit India,  though  few  Englishmen  other  than  officials 
reside  there.  Most  of  Africa  has  passed  into  the  hands 
of  European  nations  and  the  more  salubrious  portions  are 
being  colonized.  England,  France,  Germany,  Belgium, 
Italy  and  Portugal  held  most  of  the  continent  at  the  end 
of  the  nineteenth  century.  During  the  Great  War  England 
and  France  have  taken  Germany's  colonies  and  it  is  an- 
nounced that  they  will  not  be  restored  at  the  conclusion  of 
peace. 

5.  Rise  and  fall  of  powers.  The  most  notable  declines 
have  been  in  the  cases  of  Turkey  and  Spain.     At  the  begin- 


164  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

ning  of  the  period  Turkey  ruled  over  all  southeastern  Eu- 
rope, western  Asia  and  nortliern  Africa.  She  has  now 
lost  all  of  Africa,  all  but  a  very  small  fraction  of  Europe 
and  much  of  her  Asiatic  possessions.  What  will  be  left  to 
her  after  the  conclusion  of  this  war  remains  to  be  seen. 

Spain  held  all  of  South  America  except  Brazil  and  the 
southern  portion  of  North  America  and  all  the  Philippine 
and  West  Indian  Islands  at  the  beginning  of  the  period, 
and  was  accounted  one  of  the  Great  Powers.  During  the 
period  she  has  lost  all  her  colonial  possessions  and  is  now 
almost  confined  to  the  Spanish  mainland. 

The  most  notable  national  growth  has  been  seen  in  the 
expansion  of  the  United  States  into  a  world  power,  the 
growth  of  Russia,  the  expansion  of  Prussia,  the  rise  of 
Japan  and  China  into  the  position  of  world  powers,  the 
latter  because  of  its  size  and  potentialities  rather  than  its 
military  strength. 

The  old  German  empire  was  dissolved  in  the  midst  of 
the  Napoleonic  wars  and  a  new  German  empire  was 
founded  in  1871  which  has  shown  marvelous  powers  in 
the  development  of  the  sciences  and  the  application  of 
scientific  knowledge  to  the  practical  afifairs  of  Hfe,  in  mili- 
tary power  and  social  organization.  She  has  built  up  the 
mightiest  military  machine  the  world  has  ever  seen. 

The  Italian  peninsula,  for  so  many  centuries  divided  into 
petty  and  hostile  states,  was  finally  amalgamated  into  a 
united  kingdom  in  1870,  since  which  time  it  has  been  pros- 
pering and  expanding  in  such  a  way  as  to  promise  a  happy 
future. 

6.  Expansion  of  the  Functions  of  the  State.  During  this 
period  the  state  has  very  generally  taken  over  many  func- 
tions which  were  once  performed  by  the  church  or  left 
undone.  During  the  Middle  Ages  the  church  had  pro- 
vided the  only  public  educational  facilities  that  existed;  it 
had  solemnized  marriages  and  granted  divorces ;  it  had 
cared  for  the  sick,  the  poor,  the  defective,  the  widows  and 
orphans.     In  general  it  had  been  the  agency  for  the  care  of 


GENERAL   CHARACTERISTICS   OF  THE   LAST   PERIOD       165 

the  vital  interests  of  human  society.  It  had  been  recreant 
to  its  high  trust  and  had  been  deprived  in  large  measure  of 
its  privileges  and  its  wealth  by  the  Reformation. 

During  this  last  period  the  state  has  been  rapidly  taking 
over  these  forms  of  service.  It  has  founded  a  system  of 
state  schools  which  are  universal,  free  and  excellent;  it 
alone  can  marry  and  divorce  people ;  it  takes  care  of  a 
large  proportion  of  the  defective,  distressed  and  dependent 
classes ;  it  seeks  to  develop  the  health,  happiness  and  pros- 
perity of  all  the  people. 

§99 

SOCIAL  PROGRESS 

The  social  progress  of  this  great  period  has  been  no  less 
striking  than  the  political.  We  live  in  a  new  world  vastly 
different  from  that  of  the  seventeenth  century,  and  it  is 
a  vastly  better  world  to  live  in.  Some  of  the  points  of 
improvement  follow. 

1.  Living  conditions  have  been  wonderfully  improved. 
The  people  are  better  housed,  better  fed,  better  clothed, 
enjoy  more  leisure  and  they  have  a  larger  per  capita  of 
wealth.  During  the  last  century  they  have  crowded  into 
the  cities  depleting  the  purely  rural  life  of  America  and 
the  village  life  of  the  older  countries,  but  notwithstanding 
this  crowding  the  living  conditions  have  improved  along 
almost  every  line. 

2.  Old  Social  Distinctions  and  Feudal  Rights  have  been 
weakened  and  in  many  cases  have  disappeared.  Never  be- 
fore in  a  period  of  equal  length  has  the  world  made  such 
strides  in  the  process  of  democratizing  society.  There  is 
no  nobility  in  any  of  the  newer  lands  and  the  nobility  of 
the  older  countries  has  been  abolished  or  stripped  of  its 
ancient  privileges  and  immunities.  The  titles  remain  as 
the  sole  distinction. 

Slavery  and  serfdom  have  practically  disappeared   from 


l66  THE    COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

the  earth.  Moreover  laboring  men  have  banded  themselves 
together  into  unions  which  are  as  powerful  as  the  nobility 
used  to  be,  and,  it  must  be  admitted,  sometimes  just  as 
dangerous  to  the  public  welfare.  During  the  course  of 
this  entire  period  there  has  been  going  on  a  mighty  process 
of  leveling  up  and  leveling  down. 

3.  Diffusioyi  of  EduccUion.  Education  in  the  Middle 
Ages  was  aristocratic.  Only  the  clergy  and  the  nobility 
regularly  obtained  an  education.  The  common  people  were 
utterly  illiterate,  periodicals  did  not  exist,  books  were  few 
and  very  costly.  The  only  means  of  reaching  the  mind 
was  the  spoken  word.  In  this  last  period  the  state  has 
taken  up  the  work  of  educating  the  masses,  furnishing  a 
complete  and  excellent  education  entirely  at  public  expense 
and  in  the  more  advanced  countries  compelling  all  children 
to  make  use  of  the  advantages  thus  afforded.  The  conse- 
quence has  been  an  immense  improvement  in  the  general 
intelligence  of  the  people,  a  tremendous  multiplication  of 
books  and  periodicals  and  the  opening  of  the  avenues  of 
the  human  mind  to  exploitation  from  a  thousand  angles. 
The  problems  that  depend  on  illiteracy  are  disappearing, 
but  the  problems  that  arise  from  the  misuse  of  letters  are 
increasing  in  seriousness  continually. 

4.  Militarism.  Since  the  Napoleonic  wars  and  especially 
since  1870  there  has  been  an  astounding  increase  in  the 
preparations  for  war.  Learning  war  has  become  one  of 
the  greatest  burdens  of  mankind.  In  many  lands  the  man- 
hood of  the  nation  has  been  trained  from  one  to  three 
years  as  soldiers;  every  discovery  of  science  has  at  once 
been  put  at  the  service  of  war ;  in  time  of  war  the  entire 
nation  is  mobilized.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  horrors  of 
this  present  struggle  will  strip  war  of  all  its  glamor  and 
reveal  it  so  hideous  and  destructive  as  to  make  future  wars 
so  improbable  that  learning  war  can  be  diminished  if  not 
abandoned  altogether. 

5.  Use  of  Machinery.  It  is  well-nigh  impossible  for  us 
to  realize  that  all  the  applications  of  steam  and  electricity 


GENERAL   CHARACTERISTICS   OF  THE   LAST   PERIOD       1 67 

to  the  work  of  manufacture,  travel,  transportation,  com- 
munication and  illumination  have  been  made  in  the  last 
period  of  Christian  history.  Progress  in  the  mastery  and 
use  of  the  powers  of  nature  in  the  service  of  man  has  been 
greater  in  this  period  than  in  all  previous  history  combined. 
By  the  use  of  machinery  one  workman  now  accomplishes 
more  than  dozens  could  have  done  a  century  and  a  half  ago. 
These  changes  in  the  way  of  doing  the  world's  work  have 
effected  mighty  social  changes.  It  has  led  to  powerful 
combinations  of  capital  and  equally  powerful  combinations 
of  labor;  it  has  multiplied  travel  and  migration  many  fold; 
it  has  created  cities  and  emptied  the  country  and  villages; 
it  has  brought  to  the  tables  of  all  the  products  of  all  climes 
making  the  luxuries  of  a  few  years  ago  the  necessities  of 
to-day ;  it  has  brought  the  world's  doings  of  yesterday  to 
the  breakfast  table  this  morning;  it  has  given  to  the  working 
man  from  fourteen  to  sixteen  hours  out  of  the  twenty- 
four  to  be  employed  as  he  sees  fit;  it  has  eliminated  the 
small  manufacturer  and  is  eliminating  the  small  farmer 
thereby  forcing  cooperation,  reducing  independence  and 
compelling  interdependence.  In  other  words  there  have 
been  both  gains  and  losses,  but  there  is  no  probability  that 
we  shall  ever  go  back  to  former  conditions. 

6.  The  progress  of  women  in  this  period  amounts  almost 
to  an  emancipation.  At  the  beginning  of  the  period  there 
were  no  provisions  for  her  education  except  in  private 
schools.  Not  a  single  college  or  university  in  existence  was 
open  to  her.  As  a  rule  she  was  uneducated  except  in  the 
most  elementary  branches  and  in  household  economics  and 
manual  labor.  No  career  was  open  to  her  in  the  professions, 
in  teaching  or  business  life.  Her  rights  of  person  and 
property  rested  for  the  most  part  in  others.  Naturally 
her  part  in  the  religious  life  was  comparatively  small. 

During  this  period  she  has  obtained  the  right  to  a  full 
and  thorough  education  and  is  now  taking  large  advantage 
of  that  privilege.  Most  of  the  professions  are  now  open 
to  her,  and  in  all  forms  of  commercial  and  manufacturing 


l68  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

she  is  taking  large  place.  She  has  become  the  teacher  of 
child  life  in  school  and  church  almost  exclusively.  In  this 
world  war  she  is  bearing  her  share  of  the  burdens  and 
sufferings  as  heroically  and  fully  as  the  men.  She  is  rapidly 
securing  the  right  of  suffrage  and  may  be  expected  to 
take  an  ever  increasing  part  in  the  public  life  of  the  world. 


§  100 
REFORMS   OF   THE    PERIOD 

1.  Slavery.  The  greatest  single  reform  has  doubtless 
been  the  abolition  of  slavery  which  has  disappeared  from  all 
Christian  lands.  Serfdom  has  gone  with  it,  so  that  what- 
ever hardships  men  are  now  compelled  to  suffer  they  are 
no  longer  mere  chattels  to  be  bought  and  sold  as  pigs  or 
cows. 

2.  Alcoholism.  At  the  beginning  of  this  period  drunken- 
ness was  opposed  as  it  had  been  through  the  centuries,  but 
it  was  frightfully  prevalent.  Nobody  opposed  the  use  of 
alcoholic  beverages  as  such  or  believed  that  they  were  hurt- 
ful when  taken  in  moderation.  Drinking  was  interwoven 
with  the  social  and  even  the  church  life  of  the  world. 
Ministers  and  church  officials  indulged  and  the  total  ab- 
stainer was  very  rare.  The  idea  of  saving  the  individual 
and  society  by  prohibiting  the  manufacture  and  sale  of 
these  liquors  because  they  are  in  themselves  and  always 
hurtful  and  dangerous  had  scarcely  entered  the  minds  of 
the  most  advanced  thinkers,  and  had  not  affected  the  masses 
in  the  least  degree. 

Now  the  world  is  struggling  with  this  monstrous  evil  with 
good  prospects  for  complete  victory  in  the  near  future.  Not 
only  in  the  United  States  but  throughout  the  entire  world 
liquor  is  being  abandoned  and  prohibited. 

3.  Gambling.  By  its  very  nature  it  is  impossible  to 
suppress  entirely  gambling  in  private.  But  public  gambling 
has  been  greatly  reduced  in  the  course  of  this  period.     The 


GENERAL    CHARACTERISTICS    OF   THE    LAST    PERIOD       169 

lottery,  which  has  been  the  popular  and  legal  means  of 
gambling,  has  been  entirely  suppressed  in  America  and 
most  other  Christian  lands,  while  at  the  beginning  of  the 
period  it  was  not  infrequently  resorted  to  by  churches  in 
raising  money.  The  evils  of  racetrack  and  other  forms  of 
gambling  have  also  been  sharply  curtailed. 

4.  Duelling.  At  the  beginning  of  the  present  period 
the  duel  was  the  honorable  method  by  which  gentlemen 
settled  personal  difficulties  often  very  trivial.  Public  sen- 
timent approved  the  practice  so  thoroughly  that  an  honor- 
able man  dare  not  decline  to  fight  if  challenged,  or  to  send 
a  challenge  if  offended  in  certain  ways.  The  death  of 
Alexander  Hamilton  in  a  duel  with  Aaron  Burr  early  in 
the  nineteenth  century  gave  duelling  the  death  blow  in 
America.  It  still  lingers  in  milder  form  in  Germany  and 
to  some  extent  in  France. 

5.  Vice,  or  the  ''social  evil."  Less  progress  has  been 
made  in  combating  the  ravages  of  this  evil  than  any  other 
of  the  great  open  sores  of  humanity.  Under  modern  con- 
ditions of  living  it  actually  seems  to  be  on  the  increase.  It 
has  become  commercialized  and  organized  into  a  business, 
so  that  man's  cupidity  reenforces  the  demands  of  his  lust. 
In  all  the  great  cities  young  girls  are  constantly  lured  to 
their  ruin,  disappearing  in  the  most  loathsome  slavery  that 
the  world  has  ever  known.  Of  all  the  public  and  private 
evils  that  afflict  humanity  this  has  been  the  most  stubborn 
and  difficult  to  conquer. 

§101 

SOME   GENERAL   FEATURES   OF   THE   RELIGIOUS   LIFE 
OF   THE    PERIOD 

I.  Religious  Freedom.  Organized  persecution  has  ceased 
almost  everywhere,  the  Inquisition  has  been  dissolved.  Full 
civil  rights  with  freedom  of  worship  and  propaganda  are 
quite  generally  conceded  to  dissenters.     But  many  Christian 


170  THE    COURSE    OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

countries  still  have  established  churches  which  enjoy  more 
or  less  of  state  patronage  and  other  advantages  while  dis- 
senters are  permitted  to  carry  on  their  own  independent 
work,  in  some  cases  exempted  from  paying  taxes  for  the 
support  of  the  establishment  and  in  other  cases  not.  In 
many  cases   all    forms   of   religion   are   granted   state   aid. 

Complete  disestablishment  has  made  remarkable  progress 
bringing  with  it  the  full  adoption  of  the  voluntary  system 
of  church  support  and  the  absolute  equality  before  the 
law  of  all  forms  of  religious  faith.  The  colony  of  Rhode 
Island  was  the  first  government  ever  established  on  this 
basis  while  the  United  States  was  the  first  of  any  size  and 
importance.  It  has  been  followed  by  nearly  all  the  govern- 
ments of  the  New  World,  and  by  France,  Geneva,  Ireland 
and  Wales  in  the  Old  World.  No  government  has  ever 
tried  this  plan  and  then  returned  to  the  establishment. 
Many  religious  and  non-religious  elements  of  the  modern 
world  are  demanding  this  freedom  in  other  lands  and  there 
is  reason  to  believe  that  it  will  gradually  extend  to  the 
whole  world. 

2.  Protestant  Missions.  Dutch  and  German  missionaries 
had  done  some  work  in  connection  with  colonial  estab- 
lishments in  the  East  in  the  preceding  period.  At  the  very 
opening  of  this  period  began  the  most  remarkable  era  of 
missionary  effort  and  growth  which  the  world  has  seen 
since  the  apostolic  days.  It  started  in  connection  with 
colonial  enterprises  but  quickly  extended  to  all  sections  of 
the  world.  The  pioneer  in  the  English  speaking  world  was 
William  Carey  the  Baptist  who  in  1792  succeeded  in  or- 
ganizing the  Baptist  Missionary  Society  for  the  propagation 
of  the  gosjjel  in  foreign  parts.  He  was  but  a  cobbler  with- 
out university  education,  but  in  India  he  became  one  of 
the  greatest  scholars  and  most  remarkable  missionaries  of 
all  time. 

The  beginning  was  quickly  followed  by  the  organiza- 
tion of  similar  societies  in  both  England  and  America  by 
all  the  leading  denominations  and  churches.     English  and 


GENERAL   CHARACTERISTICS   OF  THE   LAST   PERIOD       IJl 

American  Christianity  has  taken  the  lead  in  giving  and 
working,  but  there  are  many  deeply  interested  friends  of 
missions  in  all  Protestant  lands. 

During  the  period  missionary  organizations  have  been 
created,  a  missionary  literature  has  been  produced,  the  his- 
tory and  the  religious  and  social  customs  and  beliefs  of 
the  unevangelized  have  been  learned,  the  fields  have  been 
equipped  with  church  buildings,  schools  and  printing-presses, 
the  Bible  has  been  translated  and  the  foundations  for  a 
Christian  literature  have  been  laid.  Several  hundred  thou- 
sand converts  have  been  gathered  into  churches  and  the 
very  life  of  at  least  two  nations  has  been  profoundly 
changed.  China  and  Japan  have  come  out  of  their  seclu- 
sion and  radically  modified  their  fundamental  ideals  in  the 
last  century,  largely  as  a  result  of  Christian  missions. 
Africa  has  been  explored  and  the  beneficent  effects  of  the 
gospel  are  already  felt  in  wide  stretches  of  "  the  dark  con- 
tinent." Foreign  missions  are  to-day  the  greatest  in- 
spiration of  the  churches  at  home,  the  reflex  influence 
of  the  devotion  and  success  of  the  missionaries  having 
been  of  incalculable  value  to  every  good  work  in  the  home 
land. 

3.  Study  and  Circulation  of  the  Bible.  As  we  have  al- 
ready seen  the  Reformation  had  rescued  the  Bible  from  the 
neglect  into  which  the  Catholic  church  had  relegated  it, 
had  translated  it  into  the  vernacular  of  the  European  peo- 
ples and  had  set  it  in  circulation  again.  But  as  a  matter 
of  fact  it  was  not  largely  circulated.  Preaching  was  theo- 
logical, religious  instruction  was  given  from  the  catechism ; 
the  impulse  to  its  circulation  was  simply  the  demand  of 
the  people.  Very  little  definite  knowledge  of  Bible  lands 
and  people  existed,  and  there  was  no  organized  effort  to 
teach  the  Bible. 

During  this  period  every  nook  and  corner  of  Palestine 
and  other  Bible  lands  has  been  explored,  the  history  of 
the  peoples  mentioned  in  the  Bible  has  been  in  some  cases 
discovered  and  in  all  cases   rewritten,   the   social  and  re- 


172  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

ligious  customs  of  the  inhabitants  have  been  studied  on 
the  ground.  All  this  work  has  made  the  Bible  a  living  and 
vital  book  as  it  had  never  been  before.  It  v^as  possible 
to  understand  its  doctrines  before,  but  their  setting  had 
never  been  known  by  western  peoples. 

Along  with  this  intensive  study  of  the  Bible  has  gone 
increased  efforts  to  bring  it  to  bear  on  the  life  of  the 
people.  Great  Bible  societies  like  the  *'  British  and  Foreign 
Bible  Society,"  the  *'  American  Bible  Society  "  and  others 
now  print  the  Bible  in  all  the  principal  languages  and 
dialects  of  the  world,  circulating  more  copies  in  one  year 
than  all  Christendom  had  produced  in  the  first  seventeen 
centuries  of  Christian  history.  The  original  text  of  the 
New  Testament  has  been  established  and  the  best  possible 
translations  of  both  Testaments  have  been  made.  Com- 
mentaries, Bible  dictionaries,  Bible  histories,  Bible  stories 
have  made  the  book  available  to  everybody  who  cares  to 
know  its  contents. 

In  the  last  half  century  the  Sunday  school  has  become 
the  chief  agency  for  the  direct  study  of  the  Bible  by  the 
people,  the  catechism  having  almost  disappeared  as  the  text- 
book of  religious  education  before  the  increasing  use  of 
the  Bible.  In  summer  assemblies,  Chautauquas  and  similar 
popular  gatherings  the  Bible  is  taught  by  the  most  scholarly 
and  skillful  teachers  of  the  land  and  studied  by  hosts  of 
men  and  women  actuated  by  the  single  motive  of  knowing 
the  will  of  God  and  becoming  more  efficient  in  the  work 
of  the  kingdom.  Probably  no  phase  of  the  religious  life 
of  to-day  is  more  promising  of  vitality  and  efficiency  than 
this. 

4.  Extra-ecclesiastical  Religious  Organizations.  Up  to 
the  beginning  of  the  last  period  Protestant  activities  were 
confined  almost  entirely  to  the  various  church  organiza- 
tions. But  as  the  tasks  enlarged  and  the  interest  intensified 
the  life  broke  over  ecclesiastical  bounds  and  created  many 
non-ecclesiastical  organizations.  The  new  wine  was  burst- 
ing the  old  bottles.     The  earliest  of  these  extra-ecclesiastical 


GENERAL   CHARACTERISTICS    OF   THE    LAST    PERIOD       1 73 

organizations  were  the  missionary  and  Bible  societies  al- 
ready mentioned. 

Following  these  came  temperance  and  anti-slavery  so- 
cieties, tract  societies,  Sunday  school  societies,  etc.  But 
perhaps  the  most  notable  of  all  are  the  various  organiza- 
tions which  are  intended  to  minister  to  and  utilize  the  re- 
ligious possibilities  of  the  young.  Foremost  among  these 
in  time  and  efficiency  was  the  Young  Men's  Christian  As- 
sociation organized  by  George  Williams  in  England  in  1844. 
Later  but  hardly  less  important  is  the  Young  Women's 
Christian  Association  and  the  numerous  young  people's 
societies  which  are  now  found  in  all  the  churches  and  de- 
nominations. (These  Protestant  organizations  have  been 
imitated  by  the  Catholics  and  even  by  the  Jews. 

The  motive  of  all  these  organizations  is  religious  and 
practical  and  they  form  one  of  the  most  striking  and  sig- 
nificant features  of  the  religious  life  of  to-day.  This 
marks  the  religious  life  of  America  more  than  that  of  any 
other  country. 

5.  Activities  of  Laymen.  The  mediaeval  church  had  no 
place  for  the  activities  of  laymen.  The  priesthood  was 
believed  to  be  endowed  with  all  religious  responsibility  and 
power.  The  layman  was  expected  to  do  nothing  but  fill 
the  position  of  an  obedient  and  dutiful  son  of  the  church, 
humbly  and  unquestioningly  receiving  its  grace  and  liber- 
ally furnishing  it  with  money. 

The  Reformers  were  also  rather  suspicious  of  the  layman, 
permitting  to  him  functions  which  were  but  little  more  im- 
portant than  those  granted  by  the  Catholic  church.  Only 
the  Quakers  abolished  ecclesiasticism  altogether  and  sought 
to  establish  a  purely  lay  Christianity,  though  the  Ana- 
baptists went  far  in  that  direction.  In  consequence  the 
layman  lost  his  interest  and  sense  of  responsibility  for  the 
spiritual  welfare  of  men  and  the  progress  of  the  kingdom. 
Individual  effort  gave  way  to  corporate  effort,  all  of  life 
except  that  under  direct  ecclesiastical  control  was  utterly 
secularized. 


174  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

The  nineteenth  century  witnessed  a  great  change  in  this 
regard.  The  gradual  weakening  of  ecclesiastical  ideas  has 
afforded  a  constantly  enlarging  place  to  the  layman.  His 
earliest  work  was  in  such  extra-ecclesiastical  organizations 
as  the  Young  Men's  Christian  ^Association,  and  these  still 
afford  him  large  opportunity.  In  addition  the  missionary 
field  and  the  Sunday  school  movement  have  provided  him 
with  important  fields  of  labor.  As  medical  missionary,  as 
teacher,  as  business  manager,  in  laymen's  missionary  socie- 
ties, and  in  many  other  ways  he  is  making  his  contribu- 
tion to  the  spread  of  the  kingdom  at  home  and  abroad.  In 
the  Sunday  school  he  is  superintending,  teaching,  training 
teachers,  arousing  and  enlisting.  Occasionally  he  becomes 
an  evangelist  of  rare  power  as  was  the  case  of  D.  L.  Moody. 
Few  features  of  present  day  Christianity  are  more  signifi- 
cant than  this  increased  freedom  and  activity  of  the  lay- 
man. 

6.  Activities  of  Women.  During  the  Middle  Ages  all 
women  who  desired  to  render  active  service  in  the  work  of 
the  kingdom  were  compelled  to  enter  a  convent  where  they 
were  permitted  to  teach  children,  serve  in  hospitals  and 
perform  other  such  tasks  suited  to  their  strength  and  en- 
dowments. The  ordinary  woman  could  do  little  more  than 
count  her  beads  and  attend  the  services  of  the  church. 
Woman  was  taboo  in  the  Catholic  church.  Ecclesiasticism 
and  the  priestly  conception  of  the  ministry  banished  her 
from  the  service  of  her  Lord  in  the  church.  Her  educa- 
tion was  neglected  till  she  was  not  prepared  either  by  ex- 
perience or  training  to  accomplish  much. 

Protestantism  abolished  the  convent,  thereby  destroying 
the  institution  through  which  woman  had  done  most  of 
her  work,  without  creating  any  other  for  her.  Most 
Protestants  were  as  unwilling  to  have  woman  take  any 
part  in  the  distinctive  work  of  the  church  as  the  Catholics 
had  been.  Consequently  she  was  long  debarred  from  any 
important  part  in  the  work  of  Protestants.  Only  the 
Quakers,  who  swept  away  every  vestige  of  ecclesiasticism, 


GENERAL   CHARACTERISTICS  OF  THE   LAST   PERIOD       1/5 

gave  her  freedom  for  Christian  activity.  And  it  must  be 
said  that  the  manner  in  which  she  used  that  freedom  did 
not  recommend  it.  The  Anabapists,  Baptists  and  later  the 
Methodists  also  granted  considerable  freedom,  at  least  to 
the  extent  of  permitting  women  on  occasion  to  exhort  in 
evangelistic  services. 

The  nineteenth  century  has  brought  a  great  change  in 
this  regard.  The  religious  movement  which  enlisted  her 
most  enthusiastic  interest  was  the  cause  of  foreign  missions. 
At  its  very  beginning  she  organized  societies  for  prayer, 
study  and  giving.  Anne  Hasseltine  Judson  went  with  her 
husband  to  the  foreign  field  and  displayed  as  much  heroism 
and  efficiency  as  he,  soon  making  of  herself  one  of  the 
most  heroic  figures  of  Christian  history.  Other  less  notable 
women  had  similar  experiences.  On  the  foreign  fields  they 
escaped  those  prejudices  which  such  activity  at  home  would 
inevitably  have  excited,  and  their  achievements  gradually 
broke  down  objections  at  home.  The  women  have  now 
become  the  chief  distributors  of  missionary  information; 
they  raise  considerable  sums  of  money  for  the  cause ;  they 
furnish  more  than  nine-tenths  of  all  the  teachers  of  the 
young  in  the  Sunday  schools,  they  are  conducting  neighbor- 
hood houses,  caring  for  the  sick  and  needy  in  hospitals. 
In  short  they  are  in  many  Protestant  communions  the  prin- 
cipal support  of  the  pulpit  in  all  the  spiritual  and  benevolent 
work  of  the  kingdom,  in  some  cases,  notably  in  the  work 
of  the  Salvation  Army,  sharing  the  work  of  preaching  to 
the  full. 

During  this  time  educational  privileges  and  facilities  have 
been  so  extended  that  women  are  becoming  on  the  aver- 
age better  educated  than  the  men.  This  naturally  better 
fits  them  for  the  service  which  they  wish  to  render.  Every 
woman  who  desires  to  serve  her  Lord  and  fits  herself  to 
do  so  effectively  will  now  find  an  open  field  among  nearly 
all  the  denominations.  At  home  and  on  the  mission  fields 
they  are  rendering  noble  service. 

7.  The  Religion  of  the  Young.     Infant  baptism  brought 


176  THE   COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

children  into  relation  with  the  church  while  they  were  still 
infants,  but  it  did  not  give  them  a  religious  experience  or 
enlist  them  in  the  work  of  the  kingdom.  Evangelical  de- 
nominations, for  some  inexplicable  reason,  did  not  expect 
conversion  before  children  had  reached  the  late  adolescent 
or  even  the  adult  age.  Doubtless  this  view  was  due  to  a 
reaction  against  belief  in  baptismal  regeneration  which 
was  the  negation  of  the  evangelical  principle. 

Whatever  the  cause  certain  it  is  that  the  decline  of  be- 
lief in  baptismal  regeneration  was  accompanied  by  a  con- 
viction that  children  could  be  brought  to  evangelical  faith 
much  younger  than  the  custom  had  been.  As  a  result  of 
earher  effort  the  average  age  of  conversion  has  been  pushed 
back  several  years  in  this  period. 

But  early  conversion  must  be  followed  by  early  train- 
ing and  service.  As  a  consequence  all  evangelical  churches 
are  now  giving  far  more  attention  to  the  conversion  and 
training  of  the  young  than  they  have  ever  done  before. 
Major  attention  is  directed  to  them  in  the  Sunday  school, 
and  numerous  societies  have  been  organized  to  meet  their 
special  needs ;  church  music  has  been  greatly  altered  in 
their  interest ;  preaching  to  them  distinctly  has  been  en- 
couraged and  the  whole  tone  of  evangelical  Christianity  has 
been  modified  in  the  direction  of  youth.  This  change,  if 
wisely  safeguarded,  ought  materially  to  increase  the  effi- 
ciency of  Christian  workers. 

8.  Growth  of  Evangelism.  Evangelism  might  be  defined 
as  a  direct  presentation  of  the  gospel,  in  whatever  way,  to 
the  intelligence  for  the  free  and  voluntary  acceptance  of 
conscious  and  responsible  human  beings.  It  is  the  antithesis 
of  sacramental  salvation  which  is  supposed  to  be  effected 
by  the  use  of  certain  ceremonies  which  are  believed  to 
operate  to  the  salvation  of  the  soul  in  the  moral  uncon- 
sciousness of  infancy.  Thus  defined  evangelism  is  em- 
ployed as  at  no  time  since  apostolic  days.  All  denomina- 
tions and  churches,  even  the  Catholics  and  Episcopalians, 
have  engaged  in  evangelistic  effort. 


GENERAL   CHARACTERISTICS   OF   THE   LAST   PERIOD       I77 

The  reason  for  this  evangehstic  activity  is  not  far  to 
seek.  The  CathoHc  church  in  the  Middle  Ages  and  the 
Protestant  state  churches  were  supposed  to  embrace  the 
entire  population.  From  the  beginning  of  life  they  were 
within  the  pale  of  the  church,  under  its  tutelage,  partakers 
of  its  grace.  On  the  contrary  the  voluntary  principle  leaves 
vast  numbers  of  the  population  outside  of  church  relations, 
constituting  a  mighty  mission  field  around  the  door  of  every 
church  in  the  land.  Vigorous  evangelism,  under  these 
conditions,  becomes  absolutely  necessary  not  only  to  the 
growth  but  even  to  the  existence  of  the  churches.  This  is 
especially  true  of  Baptists  and  those  other  bodies  that  re- 
ject infant  baptism.  Without  evangelism  they  would  die 
in  a  generation. 

This  evangelism  has  taken  many  forms  at  different  times 
and  places.  In  America,  where  the  voluntary  principle  has 
been  operative  longer  than  elsewhere  and  evangelism  has 
been  more  actively  pushed,  we  have  had  the  "  camp-meeting," 
the  annual  "  protracted  meeting,"  the  work  of  great  evangel- 
ists like  Moody  and  Sunday,  pastoral  evangelism  in  the 
regular  services  of  the  church,  Sunday  school  evangelism 
through  the  efforts  of  teachers  and  officers,  personal  evangel- 
ism where  individual  Christians  seek  to  win  men  and  women 
to  Christ  through  personal  contact  and  influence.  As  the 
years  have  gone  by  the  conception  of  the  scope  and  char- 
acter of  evangelism  has  been  elevated  and  enlarged.  It  is 
certain  to  be  more  and  more  widespread  and  important  as 
the  voluntary  principle  is  extended  over  the  world. 

9.  Decline  of  Infant  Baptism.  During  the  Middle  Ages 
infant  baptism  was  well  nigh  universal.  It  was  supposed 
to  be  the  chief,  indeed  the  one  indispensable,  means  of  sal- 
vation. Both  the  Catholic  churches  practiced  it  universally 
and  many  of  the  sects  did  likewise.  It  was  the  nexus  be- 
tween the  church  and  the  state,  the  instrument  by  which 
society  as  a  whole  was  incorporated  into  the  church.  To 
reject  or  neglect  it  was  to  bring  down  upon  one's  head  the 
wrath  of  both  state  and  church  in  the  form  of  bitter  perse- 


178  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

cution  and  religious  coercion.  Only  individuals  and  small 
persecuted  parties  opposed  its  practice. 

At  the  Reformation  all  the  great  Protestant  churches  re- 
tained it  as  they  left  the  Catholic  church,  though  some  of 
them  altered  its  meaning  in  an  effort  to  bring  it  into 
harmony  with  their  evangelical  principles.  The  Ana- 
baptists were  the  only  party  that  sought  to  abolish  it,  and 
they  were  speedily  crushed  by  the  combined  power  of  the 
various  churches  and  states  of  that  era. 

So  efifective  was  this  effort  at  suppression  that  faith- 
baptism  made  no  headway  until  religious  toleration  was 
established  in  England  and  America.  Toleration  was  fol- 
lowed by  complete  religious  freedom  in  America  and  by 
an  ever  increasing  degree  of  freedom  in  England  and  otlier 
countries.  This  progress  of  freedom  has  been  accompan- 
ied by  a  marked  decline  in  the  practice  of  infant  baptism. 
This  decline  has  been  due  to  several  causes.  One  of  the 
most  important  has  been  simple  indifference  and  neglect. 
An  irreligious  man  will  not  take  the  trouble  to  have  his 
infant  baptized,  thus  stultifying  himself,  if  he  is  free  to 
neglect  it  without  imperiling  the  civil  or  social  status  of  his 
child. 

More  important  than  this  religious  indifference  has  been 
a  rapidly  growing  body  of  pious  people  who  are  conscien- 
tiously opposed  to  infant  baptism,  believing  that  it  is  not 
only  unscriptural  but  actually  antiscriptural  and  dangerous 
to  evangelical  faith.  They  regard  it  as  the  foundation  of 
both  the  great  Catholic  churches  and  a  constant  and  seri- 
ous menace  to  the  spirituality  and  evangelical  character  of 
all  other  churches  that  practice  it,  though  they  gladly  recog- 
nize the  fact  that  some  of  the  Pedobaptist  bodies  have 
eliminated  the  most  serious  elements  of  the  practice. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  present  period  the  body  of  people 
who  opposed  infant  baptism  was  small  and  confined  almost 
entirely  to  English  speaking  countries.  At  the  present  time 
there  are  eight  to  ten  millions  who  are  organized  into 
churches  or  denominations  based  upon  faith-baptism,  and 


GENERAL    CHARACTERISTICS    OF   THE    LAST    PERIOD       1 79 

it  is  estimated  that  there  is  an  antipedobaptist  population 
of  at  least  twenty-five  millions  in  the  United  States  alone. 

10.  Practical  Beneficence.  For  a  long  time  the  Prot- 
estant churches  seemed  to  be  more  interested  in  theology, 
forms  of  worship  and  church  order  than  in  the  service  of 
mankind.  Moreover  they  were  fighting  for  their  existence. 
The  Reformation  had  swept  away  much  of  the  church's 
wealth  and  all  the  institutions  through  which  its  beneficence 
had  been  administered.  Protestants  lacked,  therefore,  the 
inclination,  the  means  and  the  agencies  for  such  work. 

The  general  spirit  of  the  nineteenth  century  has  been  pre- 
eminently practical,  and  this  tendency  has  manifested  it- 
self in  religious  life.  The  emphasis  on  systematic  theology 
and  church  peculiarities  has  waned  while  thought  has  been 
fixed  more  and  more  on  service.  Church  people  have  led 
in  most  of  the  great  reforms  of  the  nineteenth  century,  while 
creeds  have  been  altered  or  neglected  even  by  the  most 
rigidly  theological  churches.  Many  good  people  have  been 
alarmed  by  this  decline  of  emphasis  on  theology,  but  the 
tendency  continues  unabated  and  the  results  on  the  whole 
seem  to  be  good. 

II.  Opposition  to  Christianity.  During  the  Middle  Ages 
and  the  Reformation  era  there  was  no  open  opposition  to 
Christianity.  The  church  and  the  church's  ofificials  were 
often  criticized,  but  all  classes  were  theoretically  religious 
and  Christian.  During  the  last  period  Christian  lands  have 
witnessed  an  enormous  growth  of  antichristian  sentiment. 
It  has  taken  many  forms  such  as  blank  materialistic  Atheism 
or  denial  of  all  spiritual  reality ;  Agnosticism  or  the  refusal 
to  make  any  assertions  either  positive  or  negative  concern- 
ing spiritual  things ;  Pantheism  or  the  assertion  that  every 
thing  is  essentially  God,  a  view  which  is  almost  as  deadly 
to  the  value  of  religious  faith  as  Atheism;  Unitarianism 
which,  while  holding  to  the  fundamental  beliefs  of  Theism, 
strips  Jesus  of  all  significance  other  than  that  of  a  remark- 
able teacher. 

In  all  these  forms  of  thought  Christian  ideals  and  ethics 


l80  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

were  usually  accepted  by  men  who  did  not  accept  Christian- 
ity in  any  other  sense.  But  about  the  middle  of  the  nine- 
teenth century  the  ethical  ideals  of  Jesus  were  viciously  at- 
tacked by  the  mad  German  philosopher  Nietzsche  who 
apotheosized  force  and  made  might  right.  His  doctrine 
of  the  superman,  justifying  all  selfish  aggression,  was  ex- 
ceedingly gratifying  to  the  carnal  man  and  he  has  had  a 
large  following  especially  in  Germany. 

In  addition  to  active  opposition  there  is  much  indifference 
and  neglect  in  all  Christian  lands,  due  to  preoccupation  and 
absorption  in  material  interests.  Leisure,  comforts,  amuse- 
ments and  luxuries  have  engaged  the  thought  and  atten- 
tion of  men  more  and  more  in  the  latter  part  of  the  nine- 
teenth century. 

12.  Christian  Divisions  and  Christian  Union.  The  prin- 
ciple of  freedom  and  voluntarism  introduced  by  the  Reform- 
ation has  been  the  source  of  innumerable  schisms  and 
sects.  This  has  been  especially  the  case  in  English  and 
American  Christianity  where  the  voluntary  principle  has 
enjoyed  fullest  scope  and  application.  Not  only  have  the 
old  divisions  coming  down  from  the  Reformation  been  per- 
petuated into  the  last  period,  but  others  have  arisen.  The 
causes  of  these  schisms  have  often  been  trivial  and  some- 
times wholly  unworthy,  but  the  intensity  of  feeling  and 
the  strictness  of  separation  have  not  been  diminished 
thereby.  There  are  in  the  United  States  many  Presbyter- 
ian churches,  an  equal  number  of  Methodist  and  many 
types  of  Baptists  and  other  similar  bodies. 

More  recently  an  opposite  tendency  has  set  in  which 
seems  to  be  working  towards  cooperation  and  even  union  of 
the  Protestant  forces.  An  unusually  long  '*  era  of  good 
feeling,"  an  increasing  emphasis  on  the  practical  tasks  of 
the  Christian  world,  a  deepening  sense  of  the  immensity  of 
the  work  to  be  done  together  with  a  declining  emphasis  on 
the  minutiae  of  theology  and  church  order  have  combined 
to  bring  the  denominations  nearer  together  and  in  some 
instances  to  effect  actual  unions.     The  most  notable   evi- 


GENERAL   CHARACTERISTICS   OF  THE   LAST   PERIOD       l8l 

dences  of  this  tendency  in  recent  years  have  been  the  union 
of  the  United  and  the  Free  churches  of  Scotland  into  the 
United  Free  Church  of  Scotland,  the  union  of  several  types 
of  Methodists  in  England,  the  union  of  the  Cumberland 
with  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  the  United  States  of  Amer- 
ica and  the  union  of  the  Free  Baptists  with  the  Baptists  in 
the  North.  In  a  free  congregational  body  like  the  Baptists 
there  is  a  process  of  union  going  on  all  the  time.  By  this 
means  the  Hardshell  Baptists  have  been  largely  absorbed  in 
the  regular  body. 

Even  where  union  is  not  contemplated  there  is  much  co- 
operation in  Christian  and  reformatory  work.  A  notable 
effort  in  this  direction  was  the  organization  of  the  Federal 
Council  of  Churches  of  North  America  in  1908  in  which  all 
the  greater  bodies  of  Protestants  except  Southern  Baptists 
are  represented.  Through  this  organization  the  voice  of 
American  Protestantism  finds  expression  concerning  many 
matters  of  common  interest.  Another  notable  example  of 
cooperative  activity  is  seen  in  the  Edinburgh  and  the  Pan- 
ama conferences  to  study  the  common  problems  of  the  mis- 
sion fields.  Few  tendencies  in  American  Christianity  are 
stronger  to-day  than  this  sentiment  for  fraternal  relations 
and  Christian  cooperation  where  no  fundamental  convic- 
tions are  imperiled. 


B.    THE  GREEK  CATHOLIC  OR  HOLY 
ORTHODOX  EASTERN  CHURCH 

§102 

INTRODUCTION 

The  so-called  Greek  Catholic  or  Orthodox  Eastern 
church  contains  most  of  the  Christian  population  of  eastern 
and  southeastern  Europe,  northeastern  Africa  and  western, 
sontliwestern  and  northern  Asia.  Its  membership  belongs 
chiefly  to  the  Greek  and  Slavic  races,  and  number  in  all  from 


l82  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

one  hundred  to  one  hundred  and  thirty-five  millions.  As  a 
whole  they  are  behind  the  peoples  of  western  Europe  and 
America  in  culture,  economic  efficiency,  political  develop- 
ment and  moral  standards.  For  centuries  they  have  been 
in  a  continual  struggle  with  Arabic  and  Turkish  Moham- 
medanism, which  doubtless  accounts  in  large  measure  for 
their  backwardness.  In  this  struggle  they  first  arrested 
the  advance  and  then  during  the  nineteenth  century  have 
turned  back  this  flood  of  barbaric  fanaticism,  a  service  for 
which  the  rest  of  mankind  should  remain  eternally  grate- 
ful. 

The  Orthodox  Eastern  church  is  not  united  under  one 
head  as  the  Roman  Catholic  church  is  governed  by  the 
pope.  It  is  organized  into  sixteen  independent  churches, 
each  under  its  own  governing  body,  but  all  constituting  one 
church  with  essentially  the  same  doctrines,  practices  and 
sacramental  system,  and  all  looking  to  Constantinople  as 
their  spiritual  head.  The  Greek  church  is  sacramental  and 
sacerdotal  as  the  Roman,  but  there  are  several  more  or  less 
important  differences.  Like  the  Roman  church  it  has  seven 
sacraments,  but  the  rituals  differ.  Baptism  is  a  three-fold 
immersion ;  confirmation  may  be  administered  immediately 
after  baptism  and  by  a  priest ;  the  wine  as  well  as  the  bread 
(which  is  leavened)  is  granted  all  baptized  persons  even 
infants ;  crucifixes  and  graven  images  other  than  the  cross 
are  forbidden  while  pictures  (ikons)  are  extensively  used 
in  worship ;  instrumental  music  is  not  permitted,  but  singing 
(by  men  only)  is  wonderfully  developed  and  impressive; 
the  holy  mysteries  (mass)  are  celebrated  in  a  sanctuary 
separated  from  the  body  of  the  church  by  a  partition;  the 
people  pray  standing  (except  at  Pentecost)  and  facing  the 
east;  monasticism  is  highly  developed  under  the  rule  of 
St.  Basil  but  not  organized  into  orders  as  in  the  Roman 
church. 

Of  the  sixteen  churches  those  that  are  still  Greek  in  lan- 
guage are  those  of  Constantinople,  Alexandria,  Greece, 
Cyprus  and  Sinai;  seven  are  Slavic,  those  of  Russia,  Bui- 


GREEK    CATHOLIC    CHURCH    IN    LAST    PERIOD  183 

garia,  Servia,  Carlowitz,  Bosnia-Herzegovina,  Bukowina 
and  Montenegro;  two  are  Roumanian,  those  of  Roumania 
and  Hermannstadt ;  two  are  Arabic,  those  of  Antioch  and 
Jerusalem.  Six  of  these  are  national  churches  established 
more  or  less  firmly  by  law.  They  are  the  churches  of 
Russia,  Greece,  Servia,  Bulgaria,  Montenegro  and  Rou- 
mania; four  are  in  Austria,  viz.,  Carlowitz,  Bukowina, 
Bosnia-Herzegovina  and  Hermannstadt;  the  others,  with 
the  exception  of  Cyprus  and  now  Alexandria,  are  subject  to 
Turkey. 

§  103 

PATRIARCHATE  OF  CONSTANTINOPLE 

This  church  is  bounded  by  the  limits  of  the  Turkish  em- 
pire. Its  head  is  the  patriarch  of  Constantinople  who,  with 
the  assistance  of  a  Holy  Synod  of  twelve  Metropolitans 
and  a  Mixed  Council  consisting  of  four  Metropolitans  and 
eight  laymen  rules  over  the  church  in  both  spiritual  and 
temporal  things.  The  patriarchs  of  Antioch  and  Jerusalem 
report  to  the  Turkish  government  through  the  patriarch  of 
Constantinople.  The  church  numbers  perhaps  four  million 
souls  and  is  in  a  very  depressed  condition. 

The  patriarchates  of  Antioch,  Jerusalem  and  Alexandria 
have  together  fewer  than  half  a  million  members.  The 
patriarch  of  Antioch  resides  at  Damascus,  that  of  Alex- 
andria at  Cairo. 

The  church  of  Sinai  is  only  a  small  monastery,  but  it  is 
entirely  independent. 

The  church  of  Cyprus,  independent  since  431  a.  d.,  in 
191 1  had  about  180,000  communicants. 

§104 

RUSSIAN    CHURCH 

Russia  has  made  striking  progress  in  many  ways  during 
this  last  period.     It  has  continued  to  expand  in  territory  and 


184  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

increase  in  population  till  it  covers  all  of  northern  Asia 
and  had  a  population  at  the  beginning  of  the  war  of  approxi- 
mately  170,000,000,  very  diverse  in  race,  religion  and  culture. 
Serfdom  was  abolished  in  1861,  but  no  system  of  general 
primary  education  has  been  established  and  not  more  than 
20  per  cent,  of  the  population  are  literate.  Higher  and 
technical  education  is  fairly  well  developed. 

The  Russian  church  is  not  very  missionary  but  it  has 
made  some  progress  during  the  period  through  the  expan- 
sion of  the  government.  It  has  a  population  of  between 
eighty  and  ninety  millions.  The  Czar,  up  to  his  abdication, 
was  the  head  of  the  church  while  the  governing  body  was 
the  Holy  Synod  composed  of  ecclesiastics  and  laymen  ap- 
pointed by  the  Czar.  This  Synod  is  subjected  to  the  gov- 
ernment by  the  presence  of  the  Procurator  who  is  a  min- 
ister in  the  government  and  has  power  to  quash  any  busi- 
ness which  may  come  before  the  Synod.  The  powers  of 
this  Synod  are  enormous  and  by  it  the  church  is  made  more 
completely  subservient  to  the  state  than  that  of  any  other 
country  in  the  world.  The  church  is  supported  by  the  gov- 
ernment only  in  part,  the  lower  clergy  being  but  poorly  paid, 
poorly  educated  and  little  regarded.  The  bishops  are  un- 
married while  the  priests  are  married  once  only.  The 
church  has  produced  few  scholars  and  has  done  little  in- 
tellectual or  practical  work  of  any  kind,  but  recently  it  has 
been  showing  some  signs  of  an  awakening. 

Besides  the  established  church  there  are  many  sects,  some 
of  whom  do  not  differ  essentially  from  the  Orthodox 
church,  while  others,  as  the  Stundists,  are  thoroughly  evan- 
gelical. The  total  number  of  these  dissidents  is  not  known 
but  is  certainly  several  millions. 

In  addition  to  these  there  are  some  eleven  million  Roman 
Catholics  chiefly  Poles,  five  million  Protestants  chiefly 
Lutherans  in  the  western  provinces,  fourteen  million  Mo- 
hammedans, six  million  Jews  and  some  Pagans,  Buddhists, 
etc. 

In  1905  religious  freedom  was  assured,  but  in  practice 


GREEK   CATHOLIC   CHURCH    IN    LAST    PERIOD  185 

it  has  been  much  curtailed.  Baptists  and  others  have  suf- 
fered real  persecution.  These  paragraphs  are  written  in 
the  midst  of  the  revolution  that  has  overthrown  the  autoc- 
racy and  which  may  bring  lasting  freedom  to  the  Russian 
people  who  are  among  the  kindliest  and  most  religious 
people  in  the  world. 

§105 

THE   "  CHURCH    IN    GREECE  " 

At  the  beginning  of  the  present  period  Greece  was  still 
under  the  heel  of  Turkey.  Through  terrible  sufferings  in 
a  revolution  which  extended  from  1821  to  1829  she  con- 
quered her  freedom  and  organized  a  constitutional  mon- 
archy with  a  Bavarian  and  then  a  Danish  prince  as  king. 
Since  her  emancipation  she  has  made  notable  progress  in 
education  and  other  reforms. 

Her  national  church  was  organized  independent  of  Con- 
stantinople in  1833.  It  is  governed  by  a  Synod  modeled 
after  that  of  Russia,  consisting  of  five  members  appointed 
by  the  king,  exercising  almost  complete  control  over  all 
ecclesiastical  affairs.  The  population  of  between  four  and 
five  millions  is  almost  solidly  Orthodox,  there  being  only 
about  twenty-five  thousand  Christians  of  all  other  confes- 
sions. In  addition  there  are  about  five  thousand  Jews  and 
twenty  thousand  Mohammedans.  Like  the  Greek  people 
the  Greek  church  is  poor,  its  buildings  small  and  unim- 
pressive, its  clergy  indifferently  educated  and  exercising 
little  influence. 

§  106 

THE   OTHER   BALKAN    STATES 

I.  Bulgaria  did  not  obtain  complete  freedom  from  Turkey 
until  1908,  but  under  the  semi-independence  of  earlier  years 
she  had  made  considerable  progress  in  education  and  social 
reforms   of   many   kinds.     Her   church   was   organized   in 


l86  THE    COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

independence  of  Constantinople  in  1870  while  she  was  still 
a  Turkish  province,  but  this  proceeding  precipitated  a 
schism  from  the  patriarch  of  Constantinople  which  has 
not  as  yet  been  entirely  healed.  The  head  of  the  Bulgarian 
church  is  an  Exarch  who  resides  at  Constantinople,  while  the 
governing  body  is  a  Holy  Synod  of  four  members.  Relig- 
ious freedom  is  assured  by  the  constitution  and  the  ministers 
of  all  denominations  are  paid  by  the  state.  While  the 
great  body  of  the  population  are  Orthodox  there  are  Jews, 
Mohammedans,  Roman  Catholics  and  a  few  thousand 
Protestants.  American  Methodists  have  been  doing  school 
work  in  this  country  for  some  years  with  some  success. 

2.  Servia.  Like  the  other  Balkan  states  Servia  endured 
a  long  and  painful  struggle  in  her  efforts  for  freedom  from 
the  Turkish  yoke,  finally  and  fully  secured  by  the  Treaty 
of  Berlin  in  1878.  Her  church  was  organized  the  next 
year.  It  is  governed  by  a  Synod  and  is  supported  and 
largely  controlled  by  the  state.  The  free  exercise  of  all 
forms  of  worship  is  guaranteed,  but  conversion  from  the 
state  church  is  forbidden.  The  Serbs  have  not  made  such 
progress  as  the  other  Balkan  states.  Her  school  system  is 
still  very  imperfectly  developed  and  less  than  20  per  cent,  of 
the  population  is  literate.  Out  of  a  population  of  about 
five  millions  nearly  all  are  Orthodox,  though  there  are 
Mohammedans,  Jews  and  a  few  Roman  Catholics. 

3.  Roumania.  This  country,  long  under  the  heel  of 
Turkey,  has  been  an  independent  kingdom  since  1881  with 
a  population  of  between  seven  and  eight  millions.  Its 
church,  which  had  already  secured  its  independence  in  1864, 
is  governed  by  a  Synod  modeled  after  that  of  Russia  whose 
members  are  chosen  by  the  government.  Religious  free- 
dom is  assured  by  the  constitution,  education  is  encouraged 
and  much  progress  has  been  made.  The  great  bulk  of 
population  is  in  the  state  church  but  there  are  one  hundred 
and  fifty  thousand  Roman  Catholics,  twenty-five  thousand 
Protestants,  nearly  three  hundred  thousand  Jews  and  fifty 
thousand  Mohammedans. 


THE    HERETICAL   CHURCHES   OF   ASIA  187 

The  other  Orthodox  churches  mentioned  above  are  com- 
paratively small  and  unimportant,  all  of  them  except  the 
church  of  Montenegro  being  under  the  domination  of  Aus- 
tria-Hungary. 

§107 

RELATIVE   GROWTH    OF  THE   ORTHODOX    CHURCH 

Attention  should  be  called  in  closing  to  the  tremendous 
relative  growth  of  this  church  during  the  last  period.  It 
is  now  one  of  the  mighty  forces  of  the  world.  At  the  be- 
ginning of  the  period  Russia  was  the  only  country  pro- 
fessing the  Greek  religion  that  was  not  under  the  tyranny 
of  Turkey  and  Russia  was  hardly  one  of  the  great  powers  of 
the  world.  To-day  she  stands  in  the  very  first  group  of  na- 
tions, and  several  other  Orthodox  kingdoms  have  risen 
to  independence  and  world-wide  significance.  Only  a  small 
part  of  the  Orthodox  Christians  of  the  world  are  now  sub- 
ject to  the  Turkish  yoke.  Undoubtedly  this  division  of 
Christianity  is  destined  to  be  a  factor  to  be  reckoned  with 
in  the  future  history  of  the  world.  If  the  Russian  revolu- 
tion consummated  March  i6th,  1917,  stands  it  means  a 
mighty  emancipation  and  a  tremendous  leap  forward  in 
one  of  the  large  and  influential  sections  of  the  human  race. 


C.    THE  HERETICAL  CHURCHES  OF  ASIA 
§108 

INTRODUCTION 

This  group  of  churches  have  for  centuries  been  continu- 
ously under  the  Mohammedan  governments  of  the  Turks 
and  Persians  and  at  times  have  suffered  frightful  oppres- 
sions. They  have  had  an  uninterrupted  struggle  for  exist- 
ence and  hence  have  shown  little  missionary  or  other  ac- 


l88  THE    COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

tivity  beyond  heroic  tenacity  in  holding  on  to  their  faith 
and  nationality.  Their  existence  has  been  in  some  instances 
one  long  martyrdom.  They  are  neither  Greek,  Roman 
Catholic  nor  Protestant,  but  hostile  to  all  these  churches. 

§109 

THE  ARMENIANS 

The  Armenians  do  not  constitute  a  nation,  but  are  a 
people  scattered  in  Turkey,  Russia,  Persia  and  other  lands. 
At  times,  especially  in  1895-6  and  again  since  the  outbreak 
of  the  Great  War,  they  have  suffered  frightful  butcheries 
at  the  hands  of  the  Turks.  There  are  between  three  and 
four  millions  all  told. 

The  head  of  the  Armenian  church  is  the  Catholicos 
who  resides  at  Echmiadzin  in  Russian  Armenia.  Under 
him  are  a  number  of  bishops  who  with  him  constitute  the 
government  of  the  church.  They  hold  that  Christ  had  only 
one  nature,  that  the  Holy  Spirit  proceeds  from  the  Father 
only ;  baptism  is  administered  by  a  threefold  sprinkling  and 
a  threefold  immersion  and  is  followed  immediately  by  con- 
firmation ;  the  supper  is  celebrated  with  wine  and  leavened 
bread  which  must  be  dipped  in  the  wine;  extreme  unction 
is  administered  to  ecclesiastics  only  and  then  only  after 
death ;  the  worship  of  saints  is  practiced  but  purgatory  and 
related  doctrines  are  rejected ;  the  Bible  and  the  liturgy  are 
in  the  old  Armenian  language  but  preaching  is  in  the  mod- 
ern speech  of  the  country.  The  Armenians  are  tenacious 
of  their  religion,  language,  race  and  social  customs,  in  fact 
are  the  most  virile  race  in  Turkey  and  for  this  reason  they 
are  hated  intensely. 

During  the  nineteenth  century  the  American  Congrega- 
tionalists  have  done  a  great  work  in  the  way  of  education 
and  spiritual  stimulation  among  the  Armenians.  The  ob- 
ject has  not  been  to  found  Congregational  churches  but  to 
infuse  new  life  into  the  existing  organization. 


THE    HERETICAL   CHURCHES   OF   ASIA  189 

§110 
THE   NESTORIANS   AND   JACOBITES 

The  Nestorians,  now  numbering  some  three  hundred  thou- 
sand, are  found  chiefly  in  Kurdistan,  Persia  and  India,  and 
most  of  them  are  in  a  very  depressed  and  backward  state. 
All  nationalities  and  religions  have  oppressed  and  perse^ 
cuted  them.  They  have  a  head  known  as  the  Catholicos, 
living  in  the  mountains  of  Kurdistan,  and  several  metro- 
politans and  bishops.  The  Nestorians  are  much  nearer  the 
Protestant  position  than  any  other  form  of  oriental  Chris- 
tianity, believing  that  Christ  had  two  natures,  rejecting 
transubstantiation,  purgatory,  the  veneration  of  saints  and 
images,  practicing  the  marriage  of  the  clergy  below  the 
bishop.  The  Scriptures  and  their  liturgy  are  in  the  ancient 
Syrian  language  which  unfortunately  they  are  no  longer 
able  to  understand.  They  take  communion  in  both  kinds 
and  have  no  monasticism. 

The  American  Presbyterians  have  for  many  years  had  a 
flourishing  mission  among  them  at  Urumiah,  Persia.  Lately 
several  have  turned  to  the  Baptist  position  in  this  region. 

The  Jacobites,  numbering  some  two  hundred  thousand, 
are  the  remnants  of  the  early  Syrian  Christianity  now  liv- 
ing in  Syria  and  Mesopotamia.  They  are  Monophysites, 
believing  that  Christ  had  only  one  nature;  but  in  other  re- 
spects they  approximate  the  doctrines  and  practices  of  the 
Greek  church.  Once  very  influential  in  this  region  they 
are  now  weak  and  despised  by  all. 

§111 

CHRISTIANS   OF   NORTHEASTERN   AFRICA 

I.  The  Copts.  The  descendants  of  the  ancient  Egyptians 
are  now  known  as  Copts.  They  live  for  the  most  part 
in  the  cities  of  upper  Egypt  and  number  nearly  a  million. 


190  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

They  have  suffered  fearful  persecutions  at  the  hands  of 
both  the  Orthodox  Christians  and  the  Mohammedans  and 
are  now  comparatively  weak  and  fanatical.  They  are 
Monophysites,  believing  that  Christ  had  only  one  nature. 
The  church  is  governed  by  a  Metropolitan  residing  at  Cairo. 
They  practice  circumcision,  baptize  by  immersion,  cele- 
brate the  communion  by  dipping  the  bread  in  the  wine. 
Their  services  are  very  elaborate  and  lengthy,  their  fasts 
numerous  and  rigid. 

Lately  the  Presbyterians  have  been  carrying  on  a  success- 
ful work  among  them. 

2.  The  Abyssinians.  Abyssinia  is  an  independent  king- 
dom lying  in  east  Africa  with  a  mixed  population  of  several 
millions.  They  are  descendants  of  the  ancient  Ethiopians 
who  were  of  Semitic  origin ;  Ethiopia  is  still  the  native  name 
for  the  country.  Their  church,  which  dates  from  the  mid- 
dle of  the  fourth  century,  has  been  corrupted  by  absorptions 
from  heathenism  more  completely  than  any  other  church  in 
existence.  It  is  largely  dependent  on  the  Coptic  church  of 
Egypt,  whose  patriarch  always  names  the  Ahuna  or  ruler 
of  the  Abyssinian  church  from  among  the  Coptic  monks  of 
Egypt.  The  priests  are  allowed  to  marry,  but  there  are 
many  monks  and  nuns.  They  practice  circumcision,  keep 
the  Sabbath,  eat  no  swine's  flesh,  baptize  adults  by  immer- 
sion and  infants  by  aspersion  and  celebrate  the  supper  with 
grape  juice  only.  They  reject  the  doctrines  of  transubstan- 
tiation,  purgatory,  the  worship  of  images  and  related  views. 
They  have  the  Scriptures  in  the  ancient  Ethiopic  language, 
which  is  now  a  dead  language.  So  far  they  have  resisted 
successfully  all  attempts  of  both  Catholics  and  Protestants 
to  win  them  away  from  their  old  national  church. 

§112 

THE    UNIATS 

Among  all  the  churches  of  the  East,  especially  the  various 
Orthodox  churches,  the  Roman  Catholic  church  has  sue- 


ROMAN    CATHOLIC   CHURCH    IN   LAST   PERIOD  I9I 

ceeded  in  making  some  converts  to  Romanism,  working 
assiduously  at  the  task  for  many  years.  These  people  who 
leave  their  own  and  join  the  Roman  church  are  known  as 
Uniats.  They  acknowledge  the  supremacy  of  the  pope  and 
adopt  some  other  slight  changes  in  faith  and  ritual  and  often 
become  bitterly  partisan  for  Rome.  They  are  usually  al- 
lowed to  retain  their  native  language  in  worship  and  are 
sometimes  permitted  to  continue  a  married  priesthood  and 
communion  in  both  kinds.  These  together  amount  to  six 
or  seven  millions.  They  are  sometimes  called  Catholics  of 
the  Greek  rite. 


D.  THE  ROMAN  CATHOLIC  CHURCH 
§113 

GENERAL   INTRODUCTION 

I.  Temporal  Power  Lost.  At  the  beginning  of  the  last 
period  the  Roman  Catholic  church  was  facing  one  of  the 
most  serious  crises  of  its  history.  The  RationaHsm  of  the 
eighteenth  century  had  cut  deep  into  its  vitals,  especially  in 
France  and  Austria.  The  French  Revolution  which  broke 
out  in  1789  for  a  time  swept  the  church  entirely  out  of 
existence  in  that  country.  Its  property  was  confiscated,  its 
organization  was  overthrown  and  subjected  to  state  control, 
its  recalcitrant  officials  were  murdered  or  chased  out  of  the 
country,  and  finally  it  was  legally  abolished.  On  the  resto- 
ration of  order  Napoleon  recognized  Catholicism  as  the 
religion  of  the  majority  of  the  French  people  and  arranged 
to  control  as  well  as  support  it  by  the  state  without,  however, 
restoring  all  of  its  confiscated  property  or  permitting  the 
return  of  monasticism. 

Friction  soon  began  again  and  led  Napoleon,  in  1809,  to 
invade  Italy,  confiscate  and  incorporate  the  papal  state  into 
France.  When  the  Pope  protested  he  was  arrested  and 
imprisoned  till  he  signed  an  agreement  dissolving  the  papal 


192  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

state  and  transferring  the  papal  court  to  Avignon.  After 
the  fall  of  Napoleon  the  Congress  of  Vienna  in  1815  restored 
the  Catholic  church  as  far  as  possible  to  its  former  status. 
A  period  of  reaction  set  in  and  for  a  time  the  pope  gained 
rapidly  in  power,  but  before  the  middle  of  the  century  the 
democratic  movement  was  again  aggressive.  Beginning  in 
1848,  the  great  year  of  revolutions,  the  various  states  of 
Italy  were  gradually  amalgamated  into  a  united  kingdom ; 
at  last,  in  1870,  Rome  was  captured  by  the  patriots  and  the 
papal  state  outside  the  walls  of  the  Vatican  was  also  incor- 
porated into  the  new  kingdom  and  the  temporal  rule  of  the 
pope  was  brought  to  an  end.  His  protests  have  availed 
nothing  and  there  is  no  indication  that  the  world  will  ever 
again  consent  to  his  becoming  a  temporal  ruler. 

2.  Increase  of  Spiritual  Power  within  the  Church.  While 
the  pope's  temporal  power  was  waning,  his  power  over  the 
Catholic  church  was  growing.  In  1854,  without  calling  a 
council,  he  declared  the  Immaculate  Conception  of  the  Vir- 
gin Mary  to  be  a  dogma  of  the  church  and  a  Doctrine  of 
the  Faith  which  could  not  be  doubted  without  peril  to  the 
soul.  Never  before  had  a  pope  dared  to  define  a  doctrine, 
but  his  bold  action  in  this  instance  was  accepted  without  a 
murmur. 

In  1864  he  published  a  Syllabus  of  Errors  in  which  nearly 
every  object  for  which  modern  democracy  has  been  strug- 
gling was  condemned  and  anathematized  and  this  too  was 
accepted,  though  not  without  some  misgiving.  Finally,  in 
1870,  at  the  famous  Vatican  Council  the  pope  was  declared 
to  be  infallible  when  he  officially  speaks  on  any  subject  per- 
taining to  faith  or  morals.  Against  this  assumption  there 
was  considerable  protest,  several  thousand  Catholics  of  Aus- 
tria seceding  and  setting  up  an  independent  church  known 
as  the  "  Old  Catholic  Church."  But  it  availed  nothing. 
The  great  mass  of  the  church  accepted  the  blasphemy  with- 
out a  tremor  and  even  with  joy.  The  result  has  been  a 
mighty  strengthening  of  the  pope's  position  in  his  own 
church.     Practically  he  is  regarded  as  infallible  on  all  sub- 


ROMAN    CATHOLIC    CHURCH    IN    LAST   PERIOD  I93 

jects,  he  is  the  universal  bishop  having  direct  access  to  every 
diocese  in  the  v^orld.  The  entire  church  is  directly  depend- 
ent on  his  Holiness,  who  is  the  vicar  of  Christ  on  earth  and 
the  source  of  all  power,  the  organ  of  the  church's  unity  and 
infallibility.  No  other  ruler  in  human  history  has  ap- 
proached his  pretensions. 

3.  The  Size  mid  Location  of  the  Church.  Relatively  to 
both  Protestantism  and  the  Greek  Catholic  church  the  Ro- 
man church  has  declined  during  the  last  period.  And  yet 
it  is  the  largest  and  mightiest  single  body  of  Christians  in 
the  world.  It  counts  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  millions 
of  population,  about  half  the  nominal  Christians  of  the 
world.  Its  adherents  are  found  in  every  land,  but  the 
masses  of  its  membership  are  in  southwestern  Europe  and 
South  and  Central  America,  where  it  is  still  supreme.  It 
is  predominantly  a  Latin  church,  the  only  other  considerable 
bodies  of  Catholics  being  the  south  Germans,  Poles,  and 
southern  Irish.  It  uses  the  Latin  language  in  its  services 
throughout  the  world  except  among  the  Uniats.  The  coun- 
tries where  it  is  predominant  are  Italy,  France,  Spain, 
Portugal,  Belgium,  all  the  countries  in  America  from  Mexico 
southward,  the  Philippines,  and  to  a  less  degree  in  Ireland, 
Austria,  and  south  Germany. 

4.  Gains  and  Losses.  The  church  has  made  some  rather 
striking  gains  during  this  period.  For  example,  it  has  been 
permitted  to  return  into  all  the  Protestant  lands  from  which 
it  was  expelled  at  the  Reformation.  In  the  United  States 
it  has  made  huge  gains,  chiefly  by  immigration.  By  the 
freedom  of  Belgium  in  1830  and  the  emancipation  from 
Spain  and  Portugal  of  Mexico  and  all  the  Central  and 
South  American  States,  and  by  the  unification  of  Italy  in 
1870,  there  has  been  a  great  gain  in  the  number  of  inde- 
pendent Catholic  states.  By  means  of  missionary  efiforts, 
which  have  been  actively  prosecuted,  several  million  con- 
verts are  claimed  in  Asia  and  Africa. 

But  there  have  been  great  losses.  The  Catholic  states 
of  Spain  and  Portugal  have  lost  practically  all  their  colonies 


194  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

and  have  fallen  far  behind  the  greatest  Protestant  states  — 
Great  Britam,  the  United  States,  and  Germany.  Austria 
has  lost  the  leadership  of  the  Teutons  and  is  now  barely 
able  to  hold  together.  Moreover,  in  many  of  the  Catholic 
states  the  church  has  lost  enormously  in  privileges,  power, 
and  wealth.  In  France  and  most  of  the  American  Catholic 
countries  it  has  ceased  to  be  the  established  church,  and  ev- 
erywhere it  has  been  compelled  to  grant  toleration  to  other 
Christians.  Monasticism  has  steadily  declined  in  numbers 
and  influence  and  has  been  completely  abolished  in  France 
and  some  other  lands.  Moreover,  where  the  church  is  still 
nominally  supreme  large  elements  of  population,  sometimes 
a  considerable  majority,  have  lost  all  religious  interest  and 
are  for  all  practical  purposes  lost  to  the  church.  This  is 
notably  true  in  France,  Italy,  Mexico,  and  Argentina.  Prot- 
estants are  actively  engaged  in  mission  work  in  nearly  all 
the  Catholic  countries  and  they  are  meeting  with  marked 
success.  Some  of  the  most  prosperous  Protestant  missions 
in  existence  are  in  Catholic  countries.  With  the  exception 
of  France  all  Catholic  countries  are  very  backward  in  educa- 
tion, and  in  social  and  moral  reforms. 

5.  Modernism.  The  Catholic  church,  knowing  how  dan- 
gerous enlightenment  and  Bible  study  are  to  its  hold  on  the 
minds  and  hearts  of  men,  has  done  its  utmost  to  isolate  its 
people.  It  anathematizes  Bible  societies  and  all  eflforts  to 
circulate  the  Bible  in  the  vernacular,  it  discourages  its  mem- 
bers from  attending  Protestant  services,  warns  them  to 
accept  nothing  but  what  the  church  gives  them,  creates 
organizations  to  keep  them  from  association  with  Protes- 
tants, maintains  parochial  schools  to  prevent  Catholic  chil- 
dren from  attending  the  public  schools  with  Protestant  chil- 
dren, maintains  a  Congregation  in  Rome  for  the  censoring 
of  all  books  and  periodicals.  And  yet,  notwithstanding  this 
elaborate  efifort  to  keep  their  membership  from  touch  with 
the  world,  modern  thought  and  Protestant  ideals  are  here 
and  there  penetrating  the  Catholic  church.  So  serious  was 
this  in  1907  that  the  pope  undertook  a  vigorous  campaign 


ROMAN    CATHOLIC    CHURCH    IN    LAST    PERIOD  I95 

against  what  he  termed  Modernism.  This  Modernistic 
movement  was  in  part  due  to  the  philosophical,  scientific 
and  critical  thinking  of  the  time,  but  also  largely  to  the 
study  of  the  Bible  and  church  history,  and  to  the  spread  of 
the  Protestant  spirit  of  freedom  and  spirituality.  For  the 
present  the  pope  seems  to  have  triumphed,  but  those  who 
profess  to  know  declare  that  the  movement  is  not  quenched 
but  only  driven  to  cover  and  that  it  will  flame  out  again  in 
due  time.  It  seems  certain  that  the  very  existence  of  the 
Catholic  church  depends  on  its  ability  to  isolate  itself  from 
the  world  in  which  it  lives. 

6.  Learning,  Literature,  and  Art.  During  the  last  period 
the  Catholic  church  has  not  been  intellectually  as  produc- 
tive as  in  former  eras.  Its  scholastic  and  mediaeval  outlook 
necessarily  put  it  out  of  harmony  with  the  striving  and 
learning  of  the  modern  world.  It  has  steadily  excommu- 
nicated and  silenced  its  greatest  men,  and  as  a  consequence 
has  made  few  contributions  of  any  importance  in  any  field 
of  intellectual  endeavor.  Liberal  statesmen  and  rulers  are 
never  in  good  standing  with  the  hierarchy.  Freedom  which 
is  necessary  to  any  real  achievement  is  abhorrent  to  the  very 
genius  of  the  Catholic  church.  It  demands  obedient  chil- 
dren, not  developed  and  independent  personalities.  It  is  not 
likely  that  the  Catholic  church  will  ever  again  produce  a 
really  great  man. 

§114 

ITALY   AND   THE    ITALIAN    CHURCH 

Italy,  the  home  of  the  papacy,  has  experienced  remark- 
able changes  during  this  period.  At  the  beginning  the  penin- 
sula was  still  cut  up  into  many  independent  and  semi- 
independent  states,  the  papal  state  holding  the  center.  Much 
of  this  was  overturned  by  the  French  Revolution  and  the 
Napoleonic  regime,  but  was  largely  restored  by  the  Congress 
of  Vienna.     Central  Italy  was  again  put  under  the  control 


196  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

of  the  papal  state  and  Lombardy  and  Venice  were  given  to 
Austria.  But  liberal  aspirations  were  not  dead.  Led  by 
the  great  patriots  Mazzini,  Garibaldi  and  Cavour,  all  Italy 
was  gradually  freed  from  its  oppressors  and  united  under 
one  government,  Rome  being  captured  from  the  Pope  Sept. 
20,  1870,  and  subsequently  made  the  capital  of  the  united 
kingdom.  The  Pope  has  steadily  refused  to  acquiesce  in 
this  **  robbery,"  as  he  and  his  partisans  term  the  incorpora- 
tion of  the  papal  state  into  the  nation.  To  the  pope  was 
left  the  Vatican  palace  with  St.  Peter's  church  and  the 
Lateran  palace  and  church  in  Rome  and  the  Castle  Gondolfo 
near  Rome.  The  nation  also  guaranteed  to  him  a  large 
annuity,  and  the  privilege  of  free  communication  with  the 
world  outside  of  Italy.  His  person  is  inviolable,  he  has  his 
own  guards,  his  own  postal  system,  diplomatic  corps,  etc. 
In  short  he  is  not  a  subject  of  Italy,  but  an  independent 
sovereign  in  his  own  small  domain. 

In  the  years  since  its  unification  Italy  has  made  progress 
from  the  economic,  political,  and  educational  standpoints. 
She  has  also  extended  her  sway  over  large  sections  of  north 
Africa,  at  the  present  time  holding  three  colonies  there  — 
Eritrea  on  the  Red  Sea,  a  part  of  Somaliland,  and  Tripoli 
taken  from  Turkey  in  19 12. 

Italy  has  a  very  homogeneous  population  of  some  thirty- 
six  millions,  nearly  all  of  whom  are  nominally  Roman 
Catholics.  By  the  last  census  there  were  sixty-five  thou- 
sand Protestants,  most  of  whom  are  Waldenses  and  for- 
eigners, with  a  few  thousand  Baptists  and  Methodists; 
thirty-five  thousand  Jews.  But  the  upper  classes  are  gen- 
erally indifferent  or  hostile  to  religion,  as  are  the  Social- 
ists; the  government  is  officially  atheistic,  all  references  to 
God  being  carefully  avoided  in  state  papers  and  addresses. 
Beginning  in  1855  most  of  the  monastic  establishments  were 
gradually  confiscated  and  turned  over  to  the  state  for  vari- 
ous religious,  educational,  and  charitable  purposes.  Some 
of  the  most  historic  and  artistic  buildings,  such  as  Monte 
Casino,  have  been  preserved  as  national  monuments.     Ele- 


ROMAN   CATHOLIC   CHURCH    IN   LAST  PERIOD  I97 

mentary  education  is  little  developed  and  the  majority  of 
the  people,  especially  in  southern  Italy,  are  illiterate.  Since 
1877  religion  has  been  excluded  from  the  schools,  religious 
instruction  being  given  only  when  demanded  by  the  parents ; 
theological  faculties  in  the  universities  have  been  abolished. 
Italy  has  the  most  splendid  and  impressive  church  build- 
ings in  the  world.  St.  Peter's  and  St.  Paul's  at  Rome,  St. 
Mark's  at  Venice  and  the  cathedral  at  Milan  are  among  the 
most  imposing  architectural  monuments  of  human  history. 
Many  others  scattered  from  end  to  end  of  the  land  are 
marvels  of  beauty  and  artistic  merit.  The  Vatican  Library 
and  Galleries  are  filled  with  much  of  the  world's  greatest 
work  in  painting,  sculpture  and  other  arts.  Italy  is  a  beau- 
tiful land,  but  it  is  cursed  with  the  poverty,  illiteracy,  beg- 
gary, and  other  evils  which  centuries  of  papal  domination 
have  entailed.  Few  lands  suffer  from  greater  spiritual  des- 
titution and  religious  indifference  than  this  one  where  the 
Catholic  church  has  had  its  supreme  opportunity  to  show 
by  its  fruits  what  it  can  do  for  humanity.  It  has  con- 
structed a  great  ecclesiastical  organization  and  mighty  and 
beautiful  church  buildings,  but  it  has  failed  to  produce  a 
nation  notable  for  the  quality  of  its  men. 

§115 

CHRISTIANITY    IN    FRANCE 

This  has  been  a  remarkable  period  in  the  history  of 
France.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  Napoleonic  wars  France 
was  restored  to  a  monarchial  form  of  government  and  the 
Bourbons  were  again  set  upon  the  throne.  The  monarchy 
was  overthrown  in  1848  and  France  became  a  republic  for 
the  second  time.  In  185 1  the  President  succeeded  in  hav- 
ing himself  made  Emperor  Napoleon  III.  In  1870  he  was 
overthrown  by  the  Germans  and  deposed,  France  again 
taking  the  form  of  a  republic.  The  stability  of  this  third 
republic  has  steadily  grown  and  during  the  Great  War  its 


198  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

power  and  efficiency  have  been  the  admiration  of  the  world. 
In  1911,  the  date  of  the  last  census,  the  population  was 
about  forty  millions;  recently  the  birth  rate  has  been  very 
low  and  declining,  while  the  divorce  rate  has  been  high  and 
increasing.  Vice  and  drunkenness  have  been  increasing. 
France  also  has  extensive  colonial  possessions  in  northern 
Africa,  southern  Asia  and  elsewhere,  with  a  population  of 
some  forty-four  millions.  What  the  extent  and  population 
will  be  at  the  close  of  the  war  no  one  can  tell,  but  she  has 
been  materially  increasing  her  holdings  in  Africa. 

Under  the  arrangement  made  by  Napoleon  in  1801  Cathol- 
icism was  recognized  as  the  religion  of  the  majority  of  the 
French  people  and  was  controlled  and  supported  by  the 
government.  Substantially  the  same  treatment  was  ac- 
corded to  the  Lutheran  and  Reformed  churches  and  to  the 
Jews.  This  arrangement  continued  till  1905,  when  a  com- 
plete separation  between  church  and  state  was  effected, 
making  all  forms  of  religion  free  and  equal.  All  financial 
support  of  the  church  was  withdrawn,  church  property  was 
rigidly  limited  as  to  amount  and  put  under  strict  govern- 
mental supervision.  On  the  other  hand  the  church  was  en- 
tirely freed  from  state  control  as  to  its  worship,  doctrine, 
and  internal  affairs  generally.  The  Catholic  church  did  not 
accept  the  new  arrangement  as  to  property,  and  the  dead- 
lock continues. 

The  great  struggle  between  church  and  state  in  France 
has  been  over  the  schools  and  the  monastic  orders.  Not- 
withstanding the  fact  that  the  return  of  the  orders  was 
never  authorized  after  their  suppression  during  the  Revolu- 
tion, they  had  gradually  returned  in  such  great  numbers  that 
in  1901  there  were  over  one  thousand  establishments  and 
more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  monks  and  nuns 
in  the  country,  most  of  them  there  illegally.  They  were 
largely  engaged  in  teaching,  but  many  of  them  had  exten- 
sive commercial  establishments.  Their  influence  was  gen- 
erally exerted  against  the  republic  and  liberal  institutions 
of  all  kinds.     This  attitude  generated  such  hostihty  that  the 


ROMAN   CATHOLIC   CHURCH    IN   LAST   PERIOD  I99 

teaching  of  religion  was  banished  from  the  public  schools  in 
1882,  and  in  1886  all  clerical  persons  were  made  ineligible 
for  a  teaching  position  in  the  state  schools. 

The  orders  at  once  established  private  schools  in  great 
numbers  and  were  soon  educating  a  large  percentage  of  the 
children  of  France  and  these  from  the  ruling  classes.  Their 
hostility  to  the  republic  was  endangering  the  stability  of  the 
government.  Accordingly  in  1901  a  law  was  enacted  re- 
quiring every  order  desiring  domicile  in  France  to  secure 
articles  of  incorporation  from  the  French  parliament. 
Many  orders  recognized  the  impossibility  of  securing  such 
permission  and  made  no  application ;  many  applications  were 
refused.  By  this  means  monasticism  was  practically  abol- 
ished in  France,  even  as  the  Jesuits  had  been  expelled  in 
1880.  The  educational  system,  which  is  one  of  the  best  in 
the  world,  is  now  completely  secularized  or  laicized  and 
illiteracy  has  ceased.  The  government  is  officially  atheistic 
and  the  masses  of  the  people  are  largely  indifferent  or  hos- 
tile to  religion.  Such  are  the  fruits  of  the  Catholic  regime 
in  another  land  where  that  church  long  had  undisturbed 
control  over  the  life  of  a  great  people. 

Many  of  the  most  beautiful  church  buildings  in  the  world 
are  in  France,  as  for  example  the  cathedrals  of  Rheims,  re- 
cently almost  destroyed  by  the  Germans,  Bordeaux  and 
Notre-Dame  in  Paris ;  but  the  church  under  the  leadership 
of  the  Jesuits  has  fostered  superstition  to  a  remarkable  de- 
gree. The  Catholic  church  produced  a  few  scholars  of  note 
during  the  nineteenth  century,  but  they  were  usually  in  bad 
repute  with  their  church  and  not  a  few  have  been  silenced 
and  their  books  have  been  suppressed. 

There  are  about  six  hundred  thousand  Protestants  in 
France,  most  of  them  Reformed  (Calvinists)  and  Lutherans, 
with  a  few  Baptists,  Methodists,  and  others.  They  exert 
an  influence  upon  public  life  out  of  all  proportion  to  their 
numbers,  holding  very  many  of  the  highest  positions  in  the 
government.  But  they  are  not  increasing  in  numbers,  are 
divided  into  conservative  and  liberal  wings,  the  latter  being 


200  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

practically  Unitarian.  In  recent  years  they  have  produced 
some  notable  scholars  and  literary  men.  There  are  also 
from  seventy  to  one  hundred  thousand  Jews  in  the  country. 

The  French  government  no  longer  undertakes  to  be  the 
protector  of  Catholic  missions  in  the  East.  For  years 
France  furnished  the  chief  missionary  zeal  of  the  Catholic 
church  as  well  as  a  very  large  share  of  the  men  and  women 
who  did  the  work.  Lately  there  has  been  a  dearth  of  priests 
in  France  itself. 

In  the  French  colonies  nearly  all  the  great  religions  of  the 
world  are  represented  —  Mohammedanism,  Buddhism,  Con- 
fucianism, etc.  Naturally  Catholic  missions  are  being  vig- 
orously prosecuted  also,  but  entirely  without  state  aid. 

The  religious  condition  of  France  has  been  deplorable. 
It  has  seemed  to  be  slipping  into  blank  atheism.  Vast  num- 
bers of  the  people  have  long  been  completely  irreligious. 

§ii6 

CHRISTIANITY   IN    SPAIN 

No  other  country  of  the  world  has  been  so  loyally  Catholic 
during  the  last  period  and  none  has  declined  in  territory  and 
significance  so  rapidly  as  Spain.  At  the  beginning  her  col- 
onies included  nearly  half  of  North  America,  all  of  Cen- 
tral and  South  America  except  Brazil,  most  of  the  West 
Indies,  the  Philippines  and  many  o.ther  islands.  During 
the  period  she  has  lost  the  whole  of  this  vast  colonial  em- 
pire and  has  fallen  far  back  in  the  scale  of  the  nations.  She 
now  has  a  population  of  about  twenty  millions.  During  the 
period  there  have  been  frequent  struggles  between  the  lib- 
eral and  clerical  elements,  with  the  latter  usually  successful. 
According  to  the  latest  census  about  66%  of  the  population 
is  illiterate,  though  recently  the  government  has  established 
compulsory  primary  education  under  government  control 
and  with  government  support. 

The  entire  population  with  the  exception  of  about  thirty 


ROMAN    CATHOLIC    CHURCH    IN   LAST   PERIOD  201 

thousand  is  Catholic,  most  of  them  fanatically  Catholic, 
though  there  is  some  free  thinking.  The  Inquisition,  the 
most  cruel  and  inhuman  judicial  tribunal  in  history,  was 
not  finally  suppressed  till  1834,  when  its  property  was  con- 
fiscated and  applied  to  the  payment  of  the  national  debt. 
Religious  freedom  is  now  guaranteed  to  all  religious  beliefs, 
but  all  others  than  Catholicism  meet  powerful  prejudices. 
Monasticism  is  still  in  full  swing  in  Spain,  the  monks  and 
nuns  numbering  something  over  fifty  thousand.  The  church 
is  supported  by  the  state  treasury. 

Since  1868  Protestant  missions  have  been  carried  on  in 
Spain  with  increasing  success.  There  are  now  some  seven 
thousand  Protestants  —  Presbyterians,  Congregationalists, 
Anglicans,  Baptists,  and  Methodists.  In  no  land  have  the 
Jews  suffered  more  barbarous  treatment  than  in  Spain,  and 
yet  there  are  still  about  four  thousand  Jews  in  the  country. 

According  to  the  best  testimony  available  great  numbers 
of  the  more  intelligent  people  of  Spain  are  disgusted  with 
or  only  nominally  attached  to  the  Catholic  church  and  are 
turning  rapidly  to  liberal  and  free  thinking  views.  It 
would  seem  that  the  opportunity  for  Protestantism  is  now 
very  great,  and  certainly  the  moral  and  spiritual  need  is 
great. 

§117 

CHRISTIANITY   IN   PORTUGAL 

Portugal  has  a  population  of  about  six  millions,  besides 
considerable  colonies  in  Africa,  India,  and  China.  The  peo- 
ple are  extremely  backward,  more  than  75%  being  wholly 
illiterate.  The  royal  government  had  a  rather  stormy  career 
throughout  the  nineteenth  century  and  in  1910  was  over- 
thrown and  succeeded  by  a  republic.  The  new  government 
has  undertaken  to  organize  a  system  of  compulsory  primary 
education,  but  the  moral  condition  is  said  to  be  very  low. 

Portugal  was  the  only  country  of  Europe  to  remain  wholly 
unaffected  by  the  Reformation,  and  in  modern  times  it  has 


202  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

been  influenced  by  liberal  and  Protestant  ideas  less  than  any 
Other  country.  Some  progress  has  been  made,  however. 
In  1834  the  monasteries  were  abolished  and  their  rich  prop- 
erty confiscated;  some  returned  and  were  recently  confis- 
cated again  by  the  republic.  Still  there  are  nearly  one  hun- 
dred thousand  ecclesiastical  persons  in  Portugal,  or  one  to 
every  fifty-seven  inhabitants.  The  church  was  disestab- 
lished in  1911,  which  will  probably  serve  automatically  to 
reduce  the  relative  number  of  the  Catholic  clergy. 

Protestants  have  been  doing  work  in  a  small  way  since 
1845,  but  there  are  now  but  about  one  thousand  Protestant 
communicants,  divided  among  Anglicans,  Presbyterians, 
Baptists,  and  Methodists. 

§118 

CHRISTIANITY    IN   BELGIUM 

Up  to  the  outbreak  of  the  French  Revolution  Belgium  had 
been  attached  to  the  crown  of  Austria.  By  the  Congress  of 
Vienna  it  was,  in  181 5,  united  to  the  Kingdom  of  the  Neth- 
erlands under  the  Protestant  House  of  Orange.  But  dif- 
ferences of  religion,  racial  characteristics,  language,  and 
economic  interests  caused  continual  friction  and  finally  led 
to  separation  in  1830  and  the  establishment  of  an  independ- 
ent constitutional  monarchy  in  1832,  when  the  neutrality 
and  safety  of  the  new  government  was  assured  by  agree- 
ment of  the  great  powers.  Until  its  invasion  by  Germany 
in  1914  it  had  lived  in  peace,  engaged  in  internal  develop- 
ment. At  the  outbreak  of  the  war  Belgium  had  a  popula- 
tion of  about  eight  millions  and  in  addition  an  extensive 
colony  in  central  Africa  known  as  the  Belgian  Congo,  with 
a  population  estimated  at  fifteen  millions  of  Bantus. 

The  Belgians  were  a  quiet,  industrious,  and  thrifty  peo- 
ple, engaged  in  agriculture  and  manufacturing.  The  coun- 
try enjoys  entire  religious  freedom,  but  the  government 
grants    considerable    subventions    to    all    the     recognized 


ROMAN    CATHOLIC   CHURCH    IN    LAST   PERIOD  203 

churches,  Catholic,  Protestant,  and  Jewish.  The  great  bulk 
of  the  people  are  Catholic,  some  thirty  thousand  are  Prot- 
estants (Lutherans,  Reformed,  Presbyterian,  Anglican, 
Methodist,  and  Baptist)  and  several  thousand  Jews.  The 
Catholic  church  has  many  beautiful  and  impressive  church 
and  school  buildings,  several  of  which  have  been  ruthlessly 
destroyed  by  the  Germans.  Monasticism  is  allowed,  and 
there  are  more  than  thirty  thousand  monks  and  nuns  largely 
engaged  in  teaching  and  hospital  work.  The  chief  feature 
of  the  internal  politics  of  the  nation  has  been  the  struggle 
between  liberals  and  clericals  for  the  control  of  the  schools. 
Few  countries  are  more  solidly  Catholic  than  Belgium. 

§119 

RELIGION    IN   AUSTRIA-HUNGARY 

Austria-Hungary,  the  only  important  non-Latin  Catholic 
country,  is  the  last  remaining  remnant  of  the  old  Holy  Ro- 
man Empire  founded  by  Charlemagne  on  Christmas  Day, 
800.  At  the  beginning  of  the  last  period  it  still  contained 
Belgium  and  all  northern  Italy  in  addition  to  the  territory 
which  it  now  has.  As  a  result  of  the  French  Revolution 
and  the  Napoleonic  wars  these  outlying  territories  were  lost 
and  much  of  its  power  destroyed.  In  1806  Napoleon  (who 
had  himself  assumed  the  title  of  Emperor  in  1804)  com- 
pelled the  emperor  to  resign  the  title  of  emperor  of  the  Holy 
Roman  Empire,  thus  dissolving  the  oldest  government  of 
Europe.  Henceforth  the  sovereign  styled  himself  Emperor 
of  Austria.  The  dissolution  of  the  empire  left  the  German 
states  without  any  bond  of  union  or  central  government 
whatsoever.  In  the  room  of  the  empire  there  was  formed 
a  confederation  of  German  states  with  Austria  as  the  lead- 
ing member,  an  arrangement  which  continued  for  nearly 
half  a  century.  By  the  Congress  of  Vienna  in  181 5  Austria 
recovered  her  Italian  territories  and  some  additional  lands 
along  the  eastern  shore  of  the  Adriatic.     For  a  time  she 


2C4  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

seemed  about  to  recover  her  old  prosperity,  but  her  govern- 
ment was  reactionary  and  unfavorable  to  democratic  move- 
ments. Beginning  in  1848  a  revolutionary  period  set  in 
which  lasted  till  1867,  when  virtual  independence  was  be- 
stowed on  Hungary. 

The  sovereign  is  now  Emperor  of  Austria  and  Apostolic 
King  of  Hungary,  but  the  two  countries  are  largely  inde- 
pendent, each  having  its  own  constitution,  its  own  parlia- 
ment and  executive  departments.  The  matters  which  the 
two  states  regulate  in  common  are  foreign,  military  and 
naval  affairs,  coinage,  weights  and  measures,  tariffs,  cur- 
rency.    In  all  other  respects  the  two  states  are  independent. 

With  the  help  of  France  the  Italians  succeeded  in  grad- 
ually driving  the  Austrians  out  of  Italy  beginning  in  1859. 
In  1866  Austria  was  defeated  by  Prussia  and  excluded  from 
the  German  confederation  and  from  the  empire  at  its  forma- 
tion in  1871.  In  1878  it  was  entrusted  with  the  adminis- 
tration of  the  two  provinces  of  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina, 
just  then  being  freed  from  the  tyranny  of  the  Turks.  In 
1908,  during  the  confusion  in  Turkey  due  to  the  Young 
Turk  movement,  Austria  seized  the  opportunity  to  incorpo- 
rate these  two  provinces  into  the  empire,  a  proceeding  which 
in  large  measure  occasioned  the  outbreak  of  the  Great  War 
in  1914. 

Austria-Hungary  is  in  area  the  second  and  in  population 
the  third  state  in  Europe.  The  total  population  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  war  was  about  fifty  millions,  of  whom  about 
three-fifths  were  in  Austria  and  two-fifths  in  Hungary. 
The  population  is  singularly  mixed.  The  largest  homo- 
geneous contingent  are  the  Germans,  of  whom  there  are 
about  twelve  millions ;  the  next  largest  are  the  Hungarians, 
of  whom  there  are  more  than  ten  millions ;  the  twenty-two 
million  Slavs  are  divided  into  various  names  and  languages ; 
three  and  a  quarter  million  Roumanians,  two  and  a  quarter 
million  Jews,  and  a  million  or  more  of  other  nationalities 
complete  the  medley. 

Religiously  the  people  are  as  diverse  as  they  are  racially 


ROMAN    CATHOLIC   CHURCH   IN   LAST  PERIOD  205 

and  linguistically.  Roman  Catholics  predominate,  constitut- 
ing- about  thirty-five  millions  of  the  population;  the  emperor 
must  be  a  Roman  Catholic  and  the  influence  of  the  court  has 
been  steadily  and  powerfully  with  that  church.  The  church 
is  richly  endowed  but  not  state  supported  or  state  controlled 
in  its  internal  affairs.  During  the  century  it  has  been  one 
of  the  most  vigorous  and  effective  divisions  of  the  Catholic 
church,  though  even  here  the  church  has  lost  control  over 
the  schools  and  marriage,  and  religious  freedom  has  been 
wrung  from  it  since  1868.  Monasticism  is  still  held  in  honor 
and  there  are  many  monks  and  nuns.  There  are  theological 
faculties  in  most  of  the  universities  and  many  seminaries 
for  the  training  of  priests.  The  church  has  shown  much 
intellectual  and  charitable  activity,  creating  a  great  many 
organizations  for  these  purposes,  producing  an  extensive 
literature,  even  translating  the  Bible  for  the  use  of  Cath- 
olics, of  course  publishing  it  with  careful  instructions  as  to 
its  use.  Austria  has  been  decidedly  reactionary  in  both 
church  and  government,  but  for  more  than  half  a  century 
now  liberal  ideas  and  liberal  laws  have  made  progress  as  a 
result  of  popular  demand.  The  new  emperor  is  said  to  be 
much  more  liberal  than  Francis  Joseph  was.  A  rather  vig- 
orous "  free  from  Rome  "  movement  has  since  1897  carried 
a  good  many  Catholics  over  to  the  Lutheran  church. 

Of  the  Roman  Catholics  more  than  four  millions  are 
Uniats  or  converts  from  the  Greek  Catholic  church  who 
are  still  permitted  to  use  the  Greek  rite.  In  addition  there 
are  about  four  million  Greek  Catholics,  more  than  two  mil- 
lion Jews,  an  equal  number  of  evangelicals,  chiefly  Re- 
formed (Presbyterians  in  Hungary)  and  Lutherans.  Re- 
cently the  Baptists  have  been  working  with  remarkable  suc- 
cess in  Hungary,  having  secured  freedom  and  safety 
throughout  the  empire.  Half  a  million  Mohammedans  and 
a  few  scattering  parties  complete  the  religious  complexion 
of  this  wonderfully  heterogeneous  and  mixed  country.  If 
the  government  holds  together  through  the  strain  of  this 
war  great  changes  are  likely,  and  all  indications  point  to 


206  THE    COURSE    OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

increasing  liberalism  in  religion  and  politics,  no  matter  what 
the  outcome  of  the  military  struggle  may  be. 

§120 

SPANISH    AND    PORTUGUESE   AMERICA 

Space  forbids  more  than  a  cursory  glance  at  Latin  Amer- 
ica stretching  in  one  unbroken  mass  from  the  southern 
boundary  of  the  United  States  to  Cape  Horn.  At  the  be- 
ginning of  the  last  period  this  whole  vast  domain  was  under 
the  governments  of  Spain  and  Portugal.  Beginning  about 
1816  one  province  after  another  won  its  independence  and 
set  up  government  for  itself  as  an  independent  state.  At 
first  Brazil  was  a  kingdom  but  transformed  itself  into  a 
republic  in  1889.  The  history  of  most  of  these  countries 
has  been  politically  turbulent  and  stormy.  Violence,  blood- 
shed, and  instability  have  been  their  most  striking  charac- 
teristics. 

Very  early  Negro  slavery  was  introduced  into  all  these 
countries  so  that  the  major  portion  of  the  population  is  now 
composed  of  a  mixture  of  the  native  Indians,  who  were 
the  only  inhabitants  when  the  Europeans  came,  the  Euro- 
pean Spanish  and  Portuguese  and  the  Negroes  who  were 
imported  as  slaves.  In  the  remoter  interior  districts  there 
are  still  many  pure-blooded  Indians,  while  there  is  an  ele- 
ment which  has  preserved  its  Spanish  and  Portuguese  blood 
pure.  In  all  these  countries  there  has  been  much  European 
immigration  of  various  nationalities  in  recent  years.  Slav- 
ery has  been  abolished  in  all  these  countries  during  the  nine- 
teenth century,  and  in  some  of  them  progress  has  been  made 
in  the  direction  of  education  and  culture. 

In  all  of  them  the  Catholic  church  is  the  dominant  reli- 
gion and  in  some  it  enjoys  the  privileges  of  a  state  church. 
However,  all  forms  of  faith  are  permitted  and  guaranteed 
their  freedom.  In  many  of  the  countries  there  is  rampant 
infidelity  and  intense  hostility  to  the  church.     Few  of  these 


ROMAN    CATHOLIC   CHURCH    IN    LAST   PERIOD  207 

countries  have  adequate  school  systems  and  there  is  much 
illiteracy  and  superstition.  Nowhere  else  in  the  world  is 
the  Catholic  church  in  a  lower  state  of  morals  and  intelli- 
gence than  in  the  majority  of  these  countries.  The  mixture 
of  races,  the  isolation,  the  hot  climate,  the  frontier  condi- 
tions have  combined  to  make  this  group  of  nations  among 
the  most  needy  in  the  world.  Civil  marriage  has  lately  been 
made  compulsory  in  most  if  not  all  these  countries,  an 
arrangement  which  will  doubtless  improve  moral  conditions. 
The  Catholic  church  is  provided  with  church  buildings 
which  are,  however,  in  some  of  the  countries,  the  property 
of  the  state,  which  suffers  no  religious  corporation  to  hold 
property.  Most  of  the  countries  have  numerous  monastic 
establishments,  but  lately  monasticism  is  on  the  decline  here 
as  elsewhere  in  the  Catholic  world.  The  priesthood  and  the 
ignorant  classes  generally  are  fanatically  devoted  to  the 
CathoHc  church,  but  the  more  intelligent  and  cultured  are 
turning  away  from  the  church  into  infidelity  or  indiffer- 
ence. 

Peru  is  the  only  country  which  does  not  have  toleration 
and  even  here  some  Protestants  are  tolerated  in  actual  prac- 
tice. In  every  Latin-American  country  Protestant  mission 
work  is  being  pushed  with  more  or  less  vigor  and  success. 
Brazil  has  about  one  hundred  thousand  Protestants,  Mexico 
eighty  thousand,  Argentina  a  large  contingent,  and  other 
countries  smaller  numbers.  There  are  Baptists,  Metho- 
dists, Presbyterians,  Episcopalians,  Lutherans,  and  others. 

§121 

THE  WEST   INDIES  AND  THE   PHILIPPINE   ISLANDS 

Spain  succeeded  in  saving  these  island  groups  from  the 
wreck  of  her  great  colonial  empire  till  1898,  when  as  a 
result  of  the  Spanish-American  War  she  was  compelled  to 
relinquish  her  control.  Up  till  that  date  they  had  been  kept 
solidly  Catholic  with  the  exception  of  a  large  Mohammedan 


208  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

and  pagan  element  in  the  Philippines.  They  were  ignorant, 
superstitious,  and  fanatically  Catholic.  Since  passing  under 
the  control  of  the  United  States  a  good  public  school  system 
has  been  organized,  religious  freedom  has  been  established, 
Protestant  work  has  begun  and  very  marked  improvement 
is  everywhere  apparent.  Cuba,  which  did  not  come  under 
the  sovereignty  of  the  United  States,  has  also  received  Prot- 
estant missionaries  with  open  arms.  Evangelism  and  school 
work  are  being  fruitfully  prosecuted  by  Baptists  and  others. 


§122 
CATHOLICISM    IN    PROTESTANT   LANDS 

In  this  era  of  religious  freedom  Catholicism  has  had  the 
opportunity  of  penetrating  Protestant  lands  just  as  Protes- 
tanism  has  obtained  freedom  to  operate  in  Catholic  coun- 
tries. This  opportunity  has  been  vigorously  utilized  so 
that  there  is  a  considerable  body  of  Catholics  now  in  every 
Protestant  land,  even  those  where  Catholicism  was  sup- 
pressed at  the  Reformation. 

I.  Germany.  Catholicism  was  never  entirely  suppressed 
in  Germany.  The  ''  ecclesiastical  reservations  "  act  of  1555 
secured  to  the  Catholics  the  permanent  control  of  such  bish- 
oprics as  Cologne,  while  some  of  the  lands  of  southern  Ger- 
many, like  Bavaria,  were  never  reformed.  In  addition  to 
these  remains  of  Catholicism  which  have  come  down  from 
the  Reformation  there  have  been  some  trifling  gains  by 
conversion  and  colonization  in  purely  Protestant  territory. 
But  the  proportion  and  the  distribution  of  Catholic  popula- 
tion is  substantially  the  same  as  at  the  conclusion  of  the 
Thirty  Years'  War.  The  famous  Kulturkampf  of  1872,  a 
struggle  of  Bismarck  to  control  the  political  activities  of  the 
Catholic  church,  was  only  measurably  and  temporarily  suc- 
cessful. They  have  long  composed  a  compact  political  party 
known  as  the  Center,  which  have  usually  been  able  to  secure 


ROMAN   CATHOLIC   CHURCH    IN   LAST   PERIOD  209 

what  they  wished.     The  Jesuits  are  not  tolerated  in  the 
country. 

The  Catholics  constitute  about  36%  of  the  population  of 
the  empire.  In  only  three  of  the  twenty-six  German  states 
do  they  have  a  majority  —  Bavaria,  Baden,  and  Alsace- 
Lorraine;  of  the  other  states,  only  Prussia  has  more  than 
one-third  of  its  population  Catholic.  The  Catholics  are 
found  chiefly  in  south  Germany,  along  the  Rhine  and  among 
the  Poles  of  eastern  Prussia.  They  receive  state  support 
and  in  general  have  been  a  rather  intelligent  and  progressive 
type  of  Catholic. 

2.  Scandinavian  Countries.  Denmark  has  only  about 
ten  thousand  Catholics  in  a  population  of  two  and  three 
quarter  million ;  Norway  has  only  about  two  thousand  in  a 
population  of  two  and  a  half  million,  and  in  Sweden  only 
twenty-five  hundred  in  a  population  of  more  than  five 
millions.  In  other  words,  these  countries  are  freer  from 
Catholicism  than  any  other  in  the  world. 

3.  Great  Britain  and  Ireland.  By  the  legislation  of  the 
Reformation  era  Catholicism  was  suppressed  entirely  in  all 
divisions  of  this  country.  Actually  it  was  made  illegal  on 
paper,  but  continued  to  exist  in  fact,  especially  in  Ireland, 
which  was  made  more  Catholic  by  its  intense  hatred  of  Eng- 
land. Agitation  for  the  removal  of  restrictions  upon  the 
Roman  Catholics  began  before  the  end  of  the  preceding 
period.  They  continued  at  intervals  until  1829,  when  by 
the  so-called  Catholic  Emancipation  Act  full  civil  rights 
were  finally  granted  them.  In  1853  ^^e  hierarchy  was  re- 
stored in  England  amid  much  excitement,  so  that  Catholics 
now  enjoy  equal  freedom  with  others,  except  that  the  king 
and  some  of  his  m^ost  intimate  advisers  must  be  Protestants. 

During  this  last  period  Catholics  have  increased  in  num- 
bers rather  rapidly  in  the  United  Kingdom ;  this  increase 
has  been  largely  from  immigration,  but  there  have  also  been 
many  notable  conversions  among  them,  as  John  Henry 
Newman,  one  of  England's  greatest  preachers  and  literary 
men.     The  Catholic  population  of  England  and  Wales  is 


210  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

estimated  at  1,900,000,  that  of  Scotland  at  546,000,  and  that 
of  Ireland  at  three  and  a  quarter  million.  Perfect  freedom 
is  now  enjoyed  by  the  Catholics  as  by  others  in  all  these 
lands.  The  English  Catholics  have  been  among  the  most 
intelligent  in  the  world  with  considerable  scholarship  and 
productive  ability. 

Catholics  of  course  enjoy  perfect  freedom  in  all  British 
colonies,  where  they  have  been  even  more  prosperous  than 
in  the  mother  country.  Of  a  population  of  about  eight 
million  in  Canada,  nearly  one-half  are  Roman  Catholics  of 
many  nationalities,  immigrants  from  many  lands.  In  Aus- 
tralia and  New  Zealand  from  one-sixth  to  one-fifth  of  the 
population  exclusive  of  the  aborigines  is  Roman  Catholic, 
while  in  the  South  African  Union  less  than  one-tenth  are 
Catholics. 

4.  The  United  States.  The  most  phenomenal  growth  of 
Catholics  in  Protestant  lands  has  been  in  the  United  States, 
largely  because  of  immigration.  At  the  beginning  of  the  last 
period  they  were  very  weak  and  were  almost  entirely  Eng- 
lish speaking  Catholics.  Out  of  a  population  of  about  one 
hundred  millions  at  the  present  time,  about  fourteen  mil- 
lions are  Roman  Catholics,  or  approximately  one-seventh 
of  the  people.  The  church  ha:s  three  cardinals,  the  hier- 
archy is  thoroughly  organized,  and  the  church  provided  with 
parochial  schools  and  other  institutions  of  learning,  hos- 
pitals, monastic  establishments,  organizations  of  laymen  and 
women,  numerous  periodicals  and  vast  quantities  of  real 
estate.  In  many  of  the  cities  the  church  controls  a  majority 
of  the  petty  municipal  offices,  such  as  positions  on  the  police 
force  and  in  the  fire  department,  but  has  held  comparatively 
few  important  positions  in  the  government  of  the  States  or 
the  nation.  The  church  has  remained  in  large  measure  a 
foreign  institution  under  the  constant  suspicion  of  the  native 
American  element  of  the  country,  on  which  it  has  made  very 
little  impression.  Its  membership  is  composed  of  many 
nationalities  and  languages,  making  for  it  grave  difficulties. 
The  conversions  of  Protestants  to  this  church  have  been 


ROMAN    CATHOLIC    CHURCH    IN    LAST   PERIOD  211 

comparatively  few  and  unimportant,  while  hosts  of  people 
have  been  converted  from  it  to  the  various  Protestant 
churches.  Its  membership  has  been  below  the  average  in 
culture  and  social  position.  At  times  a  liberalism  which 
has  been  termed  *'  Americanism  "  has  threatened  to  make  a 
breach  between  American  Catholics  and  the  papacy  and  be- 
tween the  laity  and  the  hierarchy.  But  these  have  been 
smoothed  out,  and  Catholics  now  seem  to  look  hopefully  to 
America  as  the  home  of  a  future  Catholicism  of  immense 
significance. 

§123 

CATHOLICISM    IN    NON-CHRISTIAN    LANDS 

During  the  last  period  Catholics  have  prosecuted  missions 
more  or  less  successfully  in  most  non-Christian  lands.  They 
are  under  the  general  direction  of  the  Congregation  of  the 
Propaganda  at  Rome,  the  actual  work  being  done  by  the 
members  of  the  various  monastic  orders.  There  are  numer- 
ous colleges  and  schools  in  Europe  and  America  for  the 
training  of  missionaries.  Formerly  various  governments 
were  accustomed  to  subsidize  Catholic  missions,  but  prac- 
tically all  this  has  been  withdrawn  during  the  last  period 
and  they  must  now  be  supported  by  voluntary  gifts.  To 
collect  these  offerings  several  societies  have  been  organized 
during  the  last  three  quarters  of  a  century.  There  are  no 
statistics  on  the  amount  of  Catholic  gifts,  but  they  are  prob- 
ably far  below  those  of  the  Protestants. 

Much  of  the  Catholic  work  is  exceedingly  superficial, 
though  contact  with  Protestant  missions  has  improved  the 
quality  of  the  work  done.  All  told  they  claim  about  six 
million  adherents  in  non-Christian  lands,  though  this  is  prob- 
ably a  considerable  exaggeration. 


212  THE    COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

E.    PROTESTANTISM  IN  THE  LAST  PERIOD 

§124 

The  last  has  been  the  glorious  period  of  Protestantism. 
The  leadership  not  only  of  the  Christian  part  of  the  world 
but  of  the  entire  world  has  passed  into  their  hands.  The 
whole  world  recognizes  that  the  United  States,  Great  Brit- 
ain and  Germany  are  the  three  leading  nations  of  the  earth. 
Moreover,  the  smaller  Protestant  powers  are  their  equals  in 
all  respects  except  size  and  military  power  —  in  the  free- 
dom, contentment,  and  happiness  of  their  people,  in  moral 
standing  and  intellectual  activity  and  productiveness.  Prot- 
estants are  far  more  tolerant  and  liberal  than  Catholics, 
but  no  whit  less  convinced  or  keenly  active.  They  lead  in 
culture,  in  missionary  gifts  and  activity,  in  moral  and  social 
reforms,  in  all  movements  for  the  uplift  of  humanity,  in 
the  alleviation  of  suffering  and  distress.  It  is  true  that 
they  are  divided  into  many  denominations  and  churches  and 
not  infrequently  there  is  friction  and  waste  of  effort;  but 
when  all  is  said  it  still  remains  true  that  they  are  as  much 
united  as  the  Catholics  and  that  there  is  among  them  a 
larger  and  ever  growing  unity  of  feeling  and  spirit  of  co- 
operation. Less  and  less  they  work  at  cross  purposes,  more 
and  more  they  regard  themselves  as  divisions  in  a  common 
army.  Protestantism  is  in  closest  sympathy  with  the  aspira- 
tions and  strivings  of  the  modern  world  at  every  point.  It 
promotes  enlightenment  and  freedom,  does  not  fear  inves- 
tigation and  thought,  trusts  the  individual  and  seeks  to 
develop  him  into  the  completest  personality. 

(A)  THE  LUTHERAN  CHURCHES 
§125 

The  largest  group  of  Protestant  Christians  is  the  Luther- 
ans, who  number  all  told  about  seventy  millions.     They  are 


PROTESTANTISM    IN    THE   LAST    PERIOD  213 

substantially  agreed  in  doctrine,  polity,  worship  and  general 
type  of  Christian  life,  but  they  are  by  no  means  one  church 
in  the  matter  of  organization.  On  the  contrary,  in  those 
lands  where  Lutheranism  is  the  state  church  each  govern- 
ment has  its  own  church  and  in  countries  where  there  is  no 
established  church,  like  the  United  States,  there  are  often 
several  organizations.  The  whole  group  is,  however,  homo- 
geneous and  compact,  more  so  than  most  other  groups. 
Lutheranism  is  almost  entirely  Teutonic,  spreading  only 
with  the  migration  of  the  Teutons.  It  has  been  very  vigor- 
ous during  the  last  period. 


GERMANY   AND   ITS   CHRISTIANITY 

The  German  empire  is  predominantly  Lutheran.  In 
181 7,  the  three  hundredth  anniversary  of  the  posting  of 
Luther's  theses,  a  union  of  the  Lutheran  and  "  Reformed  " 
(Presyterian)  churches  began  and  was  gradually  carried  to 
completion  in  Prussia  and  many  of  the  smaller  German 
states.  The  resultant  church  is  known  as  the  "  Evangeli- 
cal Church,"  and  is  the  state  church  where  it  exists.  Each 
of  the  individual  states  composing  the  empire  has  its  own 
state  church  supported  from  the  state  treasury  and  con- 
trolled by  the  state  authorities,  but  religious  freedom  under 
government  oversight  is  assured  to  all  faiths.  Education  of 
all  grades  is  highly  developed  and  entirely  under  state  con- 
trol and  support.  Attendance  is  compulsory  and  religious 
instruction  is  required.  No  country  in  the  world  has  so 
small  a  percentage  of  illiteracy.  Every  university,  of  which 
there  are  many,  has  a  theological  faculty  supported  by  the 
state.  Besides  these  there  are  seminaries  for  the  training 
of  ministers  in  the  denominational  tenets  arfd  in  practical 
knowledge  necessary  to  the  conduct  of  the  affairs  of  a 
parish. 

The  Germans  have  shown  wonderful  intellectual  produc- 


214  THE   COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

tiveness  during  the  last  period.  They  have  been  the  leaders 
in  every  department  of  theological  learning  —  in  exegesis, 
systematic  and  biblical  theology,  in  church  history,  in  litur- 
gies, etc.  In  the  field  of  learning  the  whole  v^orld  has  gone 
to  school  to  Germany. 

On  the  other  hand  in  practical  service  they  have  not  kept 
pace  with  English  and  American  Christians.  In  foreign 
mission  work  they  have  been  far  behind  these  two  countries, 
though  they  have  about  twenty-five  missionary  societies 
and  at  the  outbreak  of  the  war  were  giving  nearly  two 
million  dollars  annually  to  support  work  in  many  parts  of 
the  world. 

In  social  service  and  various  forms  of  relief  work  at 
home  the  German  church  has  been  quite  active.  In  par- 
ticular the  organization  of  deaconesses,  founded  by  Pastor 
Fliedner  at  Kaiserswerth  in  1836,  was  a  notable  event  which 
has  had  important  effects  on  woman's  work  in  all  other 
Protestant  communions  throughout  the  world.  Trained  in 
the  Bible  and  other  religious  subjects,  these  women  serve  in 
hospitals,  poorhouses,  orphanages,  schools  and  many  other 
institutions  where  religious  convictions  and  training  add 
greatly  to  the  value  of  the  service  rendered.  Many  thou- 
sand of  these  Protestant  sisters  are  now  engaged  in  this 
blessed  work. 

There  are  other  Protestants  in  Germany.  Baptists  num- 
bered about  fifty  thousand  at  the  outbreak  of  the  war.  The 
Baptist  work  was  instituted  by  the  baptism  of  J.  G.  Oncken 
at  Hamburg  in  1834  by  Dr.  Barnas  Sears,  an  American 
Baptist  who  was  then  studying  in  Germany.  They  have 
grown  steadily,  though  long  harassed  by  numerous  govern- 
mental restrictions  and  losing  considerable  numbers  by  emi- 
grations. They  are  now  well  organized  and  have  a  very 
good  seminary  at  Hamburg  for  the  training  of  ministers. 
They  have  for  several  years  been  engaged  in  active  and  suc- 
cessful mission  work  in  the  African  colonies  of  Germany. 
Besides  the  Baptists  there  are  Methodists,  Mennonites,  In- 
dependent Lutherans,  and  a  few  others  numbering  in  all 


PROTESTANTISM   IN   THE   LAST   PERIOD  21$ 

about  two  hundred  thousand  who  are  not  connected  with 
any  of  the  state  churches. 

§126 

THE   SCANDINAVIAN    COUNTRIES 

Denmark,  Sweden,  and  Norway  are  the  most  solidly  Lu- 
theran countries  in  the  world.  No  other  form  of  Protest- 
antism made  any  impression  on  these  lands  during  the  Refor- 
mation era  and  very  little  since  that  time;  moreover  all 
attempts  at  the  reestablishment  of  Catholicism  have  been 
completely  fruitless.  Consequently  they  are  almost  unani- 
mously Lutheran  still.  The  Lutheran  church  is  established 
by  law  in  all  of  them,  but  others  are  tolerated.  The  Lu- 
theran churches  of  these  three  lands  have  bishops  at  their 
heads.  The  school  systems  are  all  well  developed  and  there 
is  little  illiteracy. 

In  Denmark  the  clergy  are  appointed  by  the  king  and 
supported  by  the  state.  They  are  educated  in  the  Univer- 
sity of  Copenhagen  and  have  considerable  control  over  the 
public  schools,  all  of  which  must  provide  religious  instruc- 
tion. At  the  last  reports  available  there  were  between  four 
and  five  thousand  Baptists,  a  few  thousand  Methodists,  and 
some  other  evangelical  Christians  in  the  country. 

In  Norway  all  the  clergy  are  appointed  by  the  king  and 
have  important  relations  with  the  school  system.  All  mem- 
bers of  the  state  church  are  required  to  have  their  children 
baptized  and  instructed  in  its  confession.  Jesuits  are  not 
tolerated  in  this  country.  Six  thousand  Baptists  and  ten 
thousand  Methodists  and  a  very  few  other  evangeHcal 
Christians  are  found  in  Norway. 

Sweden  is  the  largest  and  most  influential  of  these  coun- 
tries. The  Lutheran  church  is  very  firmly  established, 
though  others  are  tolerated  under  restrictions.  The  Swed^ 
ish  church  has  shown  considerable  scholarship  during  the 
nineteenth  century,  producing  many  men  of  importance. 


2l6  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

The  Baptists  have  been  active  since  1848  and  now  num- 
ber more  than  fifty  thousand,  having  been  more  successful 
in  Sweden  than  in  any  other  European  country.  Metho- 
dists have  some  fifteen  thousand  members  and  there  are 
small  bodies  of  other  sects. 

All  these  countries  have  been  engaged  in  home  and  for- 
eign missions  with  zeal  and  success. 

§127 

LUTHERANS   AND   EVANGELICALS    IN    AMERICA 

German  and  Scandinavian  immigrants  brought  their  Lu- 
theranism  to  the  United  States,  and  in  191 5  together 
counted  2,434,184,  being  surpassed  in  numbers  by  the 
Methodists  and  Baptists  only  among  Protestants.  During 
the  last  twenty-five  years  the  percentage  of  increase  has  been 
larger  than  that  of  any  other  Protestant  group.  Diversities 
of  race,  language,  and  doctrinal  view-point  have  caused 
much  controversy,  division  and  strife.  At  present  their 
membership  is  gathered  into  sixty-five  synods,  all  but  fif- 
teen of  which  are  organized  into  five  larger  bodies  known 
as  "  General  Synod,"  "  United  Synod,  South,"  **  General 
Council,"  **  Synodical  Conference  "  and  **  United  Norwe- 
gian Church."  Of  these  the  first  two  use  the  English  lan- 
guage exclusively,  while  the  "  Synodical  Conference  "  is  the 
most  decidedly  German  and  rigidly  Lutheran.  They  are 
found  in  largest  numbers  in  the  North  and  the  Middle 
West.     An  early  union  of  most  of  these  bodies  is  likely. 

They  have  twenty-eight  theological  seminaries  and  forty- 
one  colleges,  none  of  them  very  well  known,  however.  They 
are  well  equipped  with  hospitals,  homes  for  the  aged  and 
orphans,  deaconess  mother  houses  and  similar  institutions ; 
they  issue  many  religious  and  theological  periodicals  in  vari- 
ous languages. 

The  Lutherafis  are  active  in  all  forms  of  service  such  as 
home   and    foreign   missions,    Sunday   school   work,    social 


PROTESTANTISM    IN   THE   LAST    PERIOD  21/ 

reforms,  etc.  Together  they  form  one  of  the  vigorous 
moral  and  religious  forces  of  our  country. 

The  "  German  Evangelical "  churches  are  the  descendants 
of  immigrants  from  Prussia  and  other  German  states  where 
a  union  of  the  Lutherans  and  Reformed  was  accomplished 
after  1817.  These  united  churches  dropped  both  former 
names  and  called  themselves  the  "  Evangelical  Church." 
When  they  reached  this  country  they  called  themselves 
*'  German  Evangelical "  in  distinction  from  a  German  body 
very  similar  to  the  Methodists  which  was  founded  by 
Jacob  Albright  a  little  earlier  who  had  called  themselves 
"  Evangelical." 

The  German  Evangelicals  have  about  three  hundred  thou- 
sand communicants,  living  mainly  in  the  Middle  West. 
Most  of  them  belong  to  the  German  Evangelical  Synod, 
organized  in  1877.  They  are  engaged  in  all  forms  of  Chris- 
tian service,  and  compose  a  considerable  element  of  the  Ger- 
man population  of  this  country. 


(B)    REFORMED  OR  PRESBYTERIAN  CHURCHES 

§128 

The  Reformed  churches  have  not  preserved  their  unity 
and  solidarity  as  the  Lutheran.  They  have  shown  much 
greater  tendency  to  grant  religious  freedom  and  withdraw 
state  aid  and  hence  have  been  more  affected  by  the  intro- 
duction of  other  communions  and  by  schisms  in  their  own 
body.  They  have  been  behind  the  German  Lutherans  in 
the  prosecution  of  scholarly  pursuits,  but  have  surpassed 
the  latter  in  practical  service.  In  particular  they  have  been 
much  more  active  in  foreign  missions. 

SWITZERLAND 

In  Switzerland  there  is  absolute  liberty  of  conscience  and 
of  creed,  and  in  the  canton  of  Geneva  religion  has  been 


2l8  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

disestablished.  In  the  other  cantons  one  is  not  compelled 
to  pay  taxes  to  the  support  of  any  confession  in  which  one 
does  not  believe.  A  little  more  than  one-third  of  the  popu- 
lation is  Roman  Catholic,  the  others  are  Reformed,  with  a 
very  small  number  of  Baptists,  Methodists  and  others. 

The  Protestants  are  found  in  the  more  intelligent  and 
progressive  city  cantons.  They  have  produced  a  number  of 
scholars  of  note  and  have  made  notable  contributions  to  the 
theory  and  practice  of  education.  They  have  also  taken 
deep  interest  in  missions  and  other  benevolent  and  Chris- 
tian service.  The  Catholics  are  found  in  the  French  and 
the  mountainous  cantons.  The  Swiss  are  brave,  free  and 
honest  people. 

§129 

THE   KINGDOM    OF    HOLLAND 

About  three-fifths  of  the  population  of  Holland  are  Prot- 
estants, with  the  proportion  gradually  increasing.  The 
great  majority  of  these  belong  to  the  Reformed  or  Presby- 
terian confession.  At  the  beginning  of  the  period  the  Re- 
formed church  was  established  by  law,  with  toleration  of 
others.  After  the  Napoleonic  wars  the  same  general  con- 
ditions as  before  were  restored,  Holland  and  Belgium  being 
united  into  one  kingdom.  In  1830  friction  between  the  two 
parts  was  so  great  that  they  were  separated.  Friction 
among  the  Protestants  of  Holland  led  to  a  secession  from 
the  state  church  in  1834  and  the  organization  of  a  free 
church  known  as  "  The  Christian  Reformed  Church." 
This  body  has  been  evangelical,  active  and  zealous  and  has 
exerted  a  good  influence  on  the  state  church. 

Finally  complete  religious  freedom  has  been  established 
with  the  state  contributing  to  all  religious  parties  —  Prot- 
estants, Catholics,  Jews  —  who  will  accept  state  aid.  Sev- 
eral parties  like  the  Mennonites,  Baptists,  etc.,  decline  to 
accept  such  help. 

Religion  has  been  banished  from  the  public  schools,  which 


PROTESTANTISM   IN   THE   LAST   PERIOD  2I9 

are  now  entirely  secular.  Some  Protestants  as  well  as 
Catholics  have  established  Christian  schools  for  the  train- 
ing of  their  children  under  Christian  influences.  Holland 
has  produced  a  good  many  scholars  of  first  rate  ability,  but 
they  have  been  radicals  for  the  most  part,  especially  in  Old 
Testament  criticism. 

The  Dutch  Reformed  church  has  shown  some  interest  in 
missions,  and  has  sent  a  good  many  emigrants  to  the  United 
States,  South  Africa  and  other  British  colonies.  They 
themselves  have  several  important  colonies  in  the  East. 

§  130 

SCOTLAND 

Scotland  is  the  only  other  country  where  Presbyterianism 
became  the  established  religion.  Christianity  in  this  coun- 
try has  had  an  interesting  history  during  the  last  period. 
Scotland  had  suffered  from  the  prevalent  skepticism  and 
coldness  of  the  eighteenth  century  as  much  as  England,  but 
it  did  not  benefit  as  much  from  the  Evangelical  Revival. 
Doubtless  this  failure  was  due  to  the  reaction  of  the  rigor- 
ous Calvinistic  theology  of  the  Scotch  against  the  Armin- 
ianism  of  Wesley  and  his  colaborers.  At  any  rate  the  end 
of  the  century  found  the  Scottish  church  unrevived.  How- 
ever, early  in  the  nineteenth  century  a  real  though  less 
striking  revival  breathed  through  the  entire  Scottish  people 
and  has  continued  its  blessings  to  the  present  time,  the 
leading  figures  in  the  early  stages  being  the  Haldanes. 

The  new  life  soon  developed  friction  within  the  church, 
especially  over  the  right  of  patronage  —  the  king  and  nobles 
claimed  the  right  to  appoint  the  ministers,  while  the  congre- 
gations demanded  the  privilege  of  election  or  at  least  of 
veto  on  the  appointment  of  an  unsatisfactory  candidate. 
Friction  over  this  question  had  already  caused  two  schisms 
in  the  eighteenth  century,  one  in  1733,  when  the  Seceder 
Church  was  formed,  and  another  in   1760,  when  another 


220  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

secession  was  organized  into  what  was  known  as  the  Relief 
Church.  These  two  churches  united  in  1847,  forming  the 
United  Presbyterian  Church. 

In  the  meantime  the  friction  had  developed  to  such  a 
point  of  intensity  that  Thomas  Chalmers,  Scotland's  great- 
est preacher  at  that  time,  led  in  1843  i^  ^  schism  which 
carried  away  nearly  half  of  the  nation,  who  set  up  an  inde- 
pendent church  known  as  the  *'  Free  Church  of  Scotland." 
The  manner  in  which  the  Scottish  people  responded  to 
this  effort  for  freedom  is  one  of  the  heroic  chapters  in 
Christian  history.  Renouncing  every  dollar  of  state  aid 
and  endowments  they  started  from  nothing  and  in  the 
course  of  a  very  few  years  were  the  most  influential  re- 
ligious body  in  Scotland  with  beautiful  and  commodious 
church  buildings,  excellent  educational  institutions  and  well 
manned  and  supported  missions  in  many  parts  of  the  world. 
And  this  too  by  a  people  who  had  hitherto  looked  to  the 
state  and  endowments  for  the  support  of  religious  work. 

In  1900  the  "  Free  Church  "  and  the  "  United  Church  " 
united  to  form  the  "  United  Free  Church  of  Scotland."  It 
now  has  nearly  as  large  a  membership  as  the  state  church 
and  is  far  more  active  and  effective  in  its  various  forms 
of  service.  Besides  these  two  large  churches  there  are 
several  smaller  Presbyterian  churches  consisting  for  the 
most  part  of  remnants  that  were  left  from  the  various 
bodies  at  the  unions  that  have  taken  place.  There  are 
also  Episcopalians,  Congregationalists  and  Baptists,  all  of 
whom  contribute  more  or  less  to  the  religious  life  of  this 
interesting  country. 

The  various  Scottish  churches  have  shown  remarkable 
activity  in  all  forms  of  Christian  service,  especially  in  for- 
eign missions.  Many  of  the  most  notable  missionaries  of 
the  nineteenth  century  have  been  the  gift  of  Scotland. 
Names  that  will  instantly  occur  to  every  one  even  super- 
ficially acquainted  with  the  history  of  missions  are  Duff, 
Moffat,  Livingstone,  Paton  and  others  scarcely  less  famous. 
Scotland  has  also  produced  many  scholars  of  the  highest 


PROTESTANTISM    IN   THE   LAST    PERIOD  221 

ability  and  widest  influence.     They  have  been  particularly 
notable  in  biblical  studies  of  a  more  popular  nature. 

§131 

PRESS YTERIANISM    IN   ENGLAND   AND  THE   BRITISH 
COLONIES 

Presbyterianism  as  a  visible  organization  and  force  dis- 
appeared from  England  in  the  seventeenth  century.  Dur- 
ing the  latter  part  of  the  eighteenth  century  a  few  congre- 
gations of  Scotch  Presbyterians  were  formed  at  various 
points  in  the  country,  but  continued  in  more  or  less  in- 
timate relations  with  the  Scottish  churches.  During  the 
earlier  part  of  the  nineteenth  century  these  bodies  increased 
in  numbers  and  size  and  also  incorporated  considerable 
English  elements  by  an  active  evangelism.  Finally  all  these 
diverse  elements  were  organized  in  1876  as  the  ''  Presby- 
terian Church  of  England."  It  now  has  350  congregations, 
12  Presbyteries  and  nearly  one  hundred  thousand  com- 
municants. 

Presbyterians  began  to  emigrate  from  Scotland  to  Ireland 
about  161  o  and  settle  in  the  north  around  Ulster.  They 
were  at  first  favored  and  then  persecuted  by  the  English 
government,  many  of  them  being  massacred  by  the  Irish 
Catholics  in  1641.  After  the  accession  of  William  and 
Mary  they  were  not  only  protected,  but  received  a  small 
donation  from  the  state  treasury  till  1869.  Amidst  great 
difficulties  and  many  losses  by  emigration  they  have  con- 
tinued to  exist  and  to  grow.  In  1840  they  organized  the 
General  Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  Ireland 
and  now  number  more  than  one  hundred  thousand,  forming 
the  most  progressive,  prosperous  and  contented  portion  of 
the  Irish  people. 

The  Scotch  have  emigrated  in  large  numbers  to  all  the 
British  colonies  and  have  everywhere  carried  their  Pres- 
byterianism with  them,  organizing  flourishing  and  aggres- 


222  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

sive  churches  and  forming  one  of  the  sturdiest,  most  moral 
and  religious  elements  in  these  new  lands. 

§132 

PRESBYTERIANISM    IN    THE    UNITED    STATES 

The  Presbyterians  of  the  United  States  are  chiefly  of 
Scotch  descent  and  continue  to  form  one  of  the  important 
elements  of  our  religious  and  national  life.  They  have 
flourished  during  the  last  period,  now  numbering  more 
than  two  million  communicants  organized  into  several  sepa- 
rate churches.  The  most  important  of  these  are  the  Pres- 
byterian Church  in  U.  S.  (Southern)  with  a  membership 
of  three  hundred  thousand,  the  Presbyterian  Church  in 
U.  S.  A.  (Northern)  with  a  membership  of  a  million  and 
a  half,  and  the  United  Presbyterian  with  a  membership 
of  a  hundred  and  fifty  thousand.  Presbyterians  have  had 
many  divisions  during  the  period,  but  have  also  had  a 
number  of  notable  unions,  the  last  being  the  union  of  the 
Cumberland  with  the  Northern  Presbyterians  in  1906. 
They  have  emphasized  education  especially  for  the  ministry, 
have  maintained  until  recently  a  rather  rigid  type  of  Cal- 
vinistic  theology  and  have  exhibited  a  high  standard  of 
Christian  living.  Their  worship  is  still  simple,  non- 
liturgical  with  the  emphasis  on  the  sermon ;  they  maintain 
the  scripturalness  of  infant  baptism  but  in  practice  baptize 
more  adults  than  infants ;  many  of  them  oppose  immersion 
as  unscriptural,  thus  separating  themselves  from  the  con- 
clusions of  the  scholarship  of  the  world.  Some  of  their 
more  important  educational  institutions  are  Auburn,  Lane, 
Louisville,  McCormick,  Princeton  and  Western  theological 
seminaries ;  Princeton,  Central,  Cumberland,  Davidson, 
Hampden-Sidney  universities  and  colleges. 

All  forms  of  Presbyterianism  are  aggressively  and  suc- 
cessfully engaged  in  missionary  work.  All  the  principal 
pagan  fields  are  occupied,  educational  and  benevolent  in- 


PROTESTANTISM    IN    THE   LAST    PERIOD  223 

stitutions  are  well  established  and  numerous,  education  as 
a  missionary  agency  is  largely  employed. 

Presbyterians  have  contributed  largely  to  the  Christian 
scholarship  and  literature  of  our  country  and  have  also 
played  an  important  part  in  our  political  and  public  life, 
furnishing  several  presidents,  many  distinguished  jurists, 
legislators,  governors,  etc.  Their  culture  and  high  char- 
acter have  given  them  large  influence  in  all  walks  of  life. 


(C^     THE  PROTESTANT  EPISCOPAL  CHURCHES 

I 
THE  CHURCH  OF  ENGLAND 

§133 

The  Christianity  of  all  the  English-speaking  lands  has 
been  marked  by  a  wonderful  lack  of  organized  govern- 
mental unity.  Old  churches  have  been  split  into  frag- 
ments, new  churches  have  been  formed  and  strange  re- 
ligious forms  calling  themselves  Christian  have  risen  to 
plague  the  churches  and  give  anxious  hours  to  all  lovers 
of  unity,  harmony  and  truth.  And  yet  it  is  true  that  Eng- 
lish speaking  Christianity  has  been  the  most  active  and 
practically  effective  in  the  world,  and  it  is  probable  that 
there  has  been  as  much  actual  spiritual  unity  as  in  lands 
where  the  outward  marks  of  unity  were  far  more  apparent. 
In  these  respects  the  mother  country  has  shared  the  ex- 
periences of  the  United  States  and  the  colonies. 

HISTORY   OF   THE   ENGLISH    CHURCH    IN   THE   LAST   PERIOD 

The  general  tendency  of  the  period  was  toward  the  liberal- 
izing of  the  church  and  the  loosening  of  its  hold  upon  the 
life  of  the  nation.  It  was  shorn  of  many  of  its  privileges 
and  has  become  the  religion  of  a  minority  of  the  nation. 


224  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

Many  forces  have  operated  in  this  direction.  For  example 
soon  after  the  death  of  John  Wesley  in  1791  his  followers 
began  to  withdraw  themselves  from  the  state  church  and 
in  the  course  of  the  next  few  years  carried  a  great  number 
of  the  most  earnest  and  pious  people  into  independent  or- 
ganizations. Then  the  Baptists  and  Congregationalists 
have  grown  largely  at  the  expense  of  the  state  church. 
Again  in  1833  there  began  a  movement  variously  called 
the  "  Tractarian  "  or  "  Oxford  Movement "  which  carried 
a  great  many  people  into  the  Catholic  church.  Still  fur- 
ther in  a  free  country  like  Britain  many  people  have  lost  all 
connection  with  any  church  through  negligence  or  skep- 
ticism. So  far  had  this  gone  that  in  191 5  the  state  church 
had  fewer  sittings  in  its  church  buildings  than  the  dis- 
senters and  claimed  but  a  few  thousand  more  communi- 
cants, those  of  the  state  church  numbering  2,445,114  and  the 
combined  dissenters  2,136,782. 

The  Anglican  church  has  three  well  defined  parties  — 
the  Low  Church  or  evangelical  party  composed  in  part  of 
remnants  of  the  Methodist  movement,  the  High  Church 
or  Catholic  party  who  are  ritualistic  and  sacerdotal,  and 
the  Broad  Church  or  Liberal  party  who  represent  the 
German  religious  attitude.  Among  these  parties  controver- 
sies have  been  frequent  and  bitter,  more  than  once  reach- 
ing settlement  only  in  the  civil  courts.  The  net  result  of 
these  years  of  controversy  has  been  the  recognition  by  the 
state  of  the  right  of  all  these  parties  to  a  permanent  place 
in  the  Church  of  England.  Undoubtedly  the  High  Church 
party  have  forged  ahead  in  recent  years  until  they  are  now 
dominant.  But  the  official  and  upper  classes  generally  are 
still  loyal  to  this  church  while  the  great  middle  classes  have 
adopted  Free  Church  principles  in  large  measure. 


PROTESTANTISM   IN   THE   LAST   PERIOD  22$ 

§134 
CHURCH   AND   STATE 

The  Anglican  church  is  still  established  by  law  but  it  has 
during  the  nineteenth  century  lost  many  of  its  privileges 
and  prerogatives.  It  has  rich  endowments  for  many  of  its 
parishes,  but  no  one  is  now  required  to  pay  taxes  for  its 
support  if  he  is  a  member  of  any  other  church.  The  king 
who  must  be  a  member  of  the  state  church  is  its  "  supreme 
governor."  He  appoints  the  archbishops  and  the  bishops 
and  some  of  the  lower  officials  and  has  the  patronage  of 
many  of  its  parishes.  The  archbishops  and  some  of  the 
bishops  have  seats  in  the  House  of  Lords  and  the  other 
bishops  (with  one  exception),  may  be  appointed  to  seats. 
Parliament  is  the  law-making  body  of  the  church. 

Th6re  is,  however,  complete  religious  toleration  and  the 
church  was  disestablished  in  Ireland  in  1871  and  in  Wales 
in  1914  to  go  into  effect  after  the  war.  The  universities 
of  Oxford  and  Cambridge  were  opened  to  the  students 
of  all  denominations  in  the  course  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury, and  the  new  universities  are  free  to  all.  The  congre- 
gations have  no  voice  in  the  choice  of  their  rectors,  their 
appointment  being  in  the  hands  of  "  Patrons,"  individuals 
who  for  one  reason  or  another  have  the  legal  right  to 
"  present "  men  to  the  Hvings.  The  consent  of  the  bishop 
is  necessary  to  the  induction  of  the  incumbent  into  office, 
but  once  in  charge  he  can  be  dispossessed  only  by  a  proc- 
ess at  law. 

§135 

EDUCATION    IN   ENGLAND 

As  yet  England  has  no  national  system  of  education. 
The  system  is  a  patchwork  infinitely  complex  and  only  mod- 
erately efficient.  There  is  provision  for  religious  instruc- 
tion but  the  state  church  does  not  control  it,  and  it  is  not 


226  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

imposed  upon  those  who  do  not  desire  it.  Up  to  the  be- 
ginning of  the  nineteenth  century  higher  education  was 
wholly  committed  to  the  two  old  universities  of  Oxford 
and  Cambridge  which  were  under  the  dominance  of  the 
state  church.  During  the  century  four  new  universities 
were  founded  —  Durham  in  1831,  London  in  1836,  \^ictoria 
at  Manchester  in  1880  and  Birmingham  in  1900.  Already 
in  the  twentieth  century  four  more  have  been  added  — 
Liverpool  in  1903,  Leeds  in  1904,  Sheffield  in  1905  and 
Bristol  in  1909.  These  municipal  institutions  have  no  con- 
nection with  the  state  church  but  are  democratic  in  the 
full  sense  of  the  word.  As  this  paragraph  is  written  a 
great  agitation  is  in  progress  for  the  complete  recasting  of 
the  educational  system  of  the  country  and  it  is  probable 
that  the  close  of  the  war  will  see  a  great  reform  in  this 
direction.  The  outstanding  fact  of  the  century  is  the  loss 
by  the  state  church  of  the  control  over  education  and  the 
growth  of  dissent. 

§136 

THEOLOGICAL   SCIENCE 

The  state  church  has  produced  many  great  scholars  and 
preachers  during  this  period.  English  scholars  have  been 
a  check  on  the  investigations  and  the  wild  speculations  of 
the  Germans.  They  have  devoted  themselves  assiduously 
to  the  exegesis  of  the  Scriptures  and  here  have  made  no- 
table contributions.  Lightfoot,  Ellicott,  Westcott,  Hort  are 
names  known  to  all  acquainted  with  the  triumphs  of  biblical 
scholarship  in  the  nineteenth  century.  English  scholar- 
ship, led  by  the  great  scholars  of  the  established  church, 
assisted  by  the  scholars  of  other  English  and  American 
denominations,  gave  us  the  best  revision  of  the  Bible  made 
up  to  that  time  and  only  surpassed  to  the  present  by  the 
American  edition.  It  has  also  contributed  great  hymn- 
writers  and  defenders  and  expounders  of  Christianity  as  a 
whole. 


PROTESTANTISM    IN   THE   LAST   PERIOD  227 

MISSIONS   IN   THE   STATE   CHURCH 
§137 

The  Anglican  church  has  been  very  active  in  its  mis- 
sion work  in  many  parts  of  the  non-Christian  world.  It 
has  two  great  missionary  societies,  the  Society  for  the 
Propagation  of  the  Gospel  organized  in  1701  and  the 
Church  Missionary  Society  organized  in  1799.  The  amount 
of  voluntary  gifts  for  all  purposes  in  1903  was  upwards  of 
forty  million  dollars  of  which  about  six  millions  were  for 
Home  and  Foreign  Missions.  Its  missions  are  well 
equipped  in  a  material  way  and  manned  by  well  trained 
staffs  in  all  departments  of  work.  It  has  laid  special 
emphasis  on  education  as  a  means  of  missionary  work. 
Many  of  the  most  famous  and  efficient  missionaries  of 
the  nineteenth  century  have  been  members  of  the  English 
church.  In  the  state  church  the  Sunday  school  move- 
ment was  originated  by  Robert  Raikes  in  1780,  the  British 
and  Foreign  Bible  Society  in  1804  and  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association  by  George  Williams  in  1844. 

II 

§138 

THE   PROTESTANT   EPISCOPAL   CHURCH    IN   THE 
UNITED    STATES 

After  the  Revolutionary  War  the  Episcopal  church  was 
organized  in  entire  independence  of  the  EngHsh  church, 
with  its  own  bishops,  service  and  methods.  It  was  much 
depressed  for  several  years  on  account  of  the  sympathy  of 
its  clergy  with  the  mother  country  during  the  long  and 
grilling  struggle  of  the  Revolution.  About  1810  it  began 
to  grow  and  has  had  a  rather  remarkable  history  of  pros- 
perity since  that  time.     It  has  not  been  torn  by  controversy 


228  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

quite  so  much  as  the  Church  of  England,  but  it  has  the 
same  parties  —  High,  Low  and  Broad  —  with  the  High 
Church  forging  ahead  as  in  England.  This  party  sym- 
pathizes with  the  Catholics  and  does  not  desire  to  be  known 
as  Protestant.  The  communicants  in  191 5  numbered  a 
little  more  than  one  million,  and  the  number  of  infant  bap- 
tisms that  year  were  53,289  while  the  faith  baptisms  num- 
bered 14,537- 

On  account  of  its  connection  with  the  nobility  and  gov- 
erning classes  in  England  it  has  appealed  to  the  wealthy 
and  socially  ambitious  in  this  country,  not  infrequently  lur- 
ing such  members  away  from  other  Christian  bodies  on 
these  grounds.  Its  orderly  and  beautiful  services,  its  artis- 
tic church  buildings,  its  freedom  from  revival  excitements 
and  methods  have  attracted  others  so  that  its  growth  has 
been  in  no  small  measure  at  the  expense  of  other  denom- 
inations. It  has  produced  a  few  scholars  and  preachers 
of  note,  but  in  these  regards  has  not  kept  pace  with  the 
Church  of  England.  But  it  exerts  an  influence  on  our 
public  and  social  life  out  of  all  proportion  to  its  numbers, 
especially  in  the  federal  government  and  in  the  army  and 
navy.  In  general  it  is  sacerdotal  and  sacramental,  refusing 
to  cooperate  with  other  denominations  in  any  sort  of  re- 
ligious work ;  this  is  especially  true  of  the  High  Church 
party.  Its  worship  is  liturgical,  preaching  being  little 
stressed. 

In  missions  it  has  been  quite  active  and  effective.  In 
19 1 5  the  church  received  from  all  sources  for  missions  about 
one  and  three  quarter  million  dollars,  more  than  twenty 
milHons  being  given  for  all  purposes.  The  majority  of 
its  work  could  be  described  as  Home  Missions,  but  it  also 
has  work  in  Africa,  China,  Japan,  Cuba  and  Mexico. 
Much  of  its  effort  is  devoted  to  school  work,  hospital  work 
and  similar  forms  of  service. 

The  church  is  organized  into  parishes,  dioceses,  provinces 
and  a  General  Convention  which  meets  every  three  years. 
The  last  is  the  legislative,  executive  and  judicial  body  of 


PROTESTANTISM   IN   THE   LAST   PERIOD  229 

the  church.  Its  head  is  the  bishop  oldest  in  length  of  serv- 
ice known  as  the  "  Presiding  Bishop  " ;  it  is  composed  of 
two  houses  —  a  House  of  Bishops  and  a  House  of  Clerical 
and  Lay  Delegates  consisting  of  four  clergymen  and  four 
laymen  from  each  diocese.  Any  action  to  be  legal  must 
have  the  concurrence  of  both  houses  and  in  the  lower 
house  the  concurrence  of  both  orders  sitting  separately. 

THE   EPISCOPAL    CHURCH    IN    THE   BRITISH    COLONIES 

Naturally  the  Episcopal  church  is  strong  in  all  the  Brit- 
ish colonies  though  it  is  entirely  independent  of  the  Church 
of  England.  In  Canada  it  has  more  than  a  million  mem- 
bers, standing  third  among  the  denominations  in  numerical 
strength ;  in  New  Zealand  it  is  first  with  about  forty  per 
cent,  of  the  population;  in  the  various  states  of  Australia 
from  one-fourth  to  one-half  the  population  is  Episcopalian. 

The  church  in  the  colonies  and  in  America  has  not  pro- 
duced the  high  type  of  intellectual  life  which  is  seen  in 
England,  but  it  has  been  effective  in  the  practical  tasks  of 
the  Christian  life. 


(D)     THE  BAPTISTS  IN  THE  LAST  PERIOD 
§139 

IN    GENERAL 

One  of  the  most  striking  features  of  the  history  of  the 
nineteenth  century  has  been  the  relative  decline  of  infant 
baptism  among  evangelical  Christians  and  the  correspond- 
ing growth  of  faith-baptism.  Most  of  the  latter  move- 
ment has  been  incorporated  in  the  Baptist  denomination. 
Considering  the  prejudices  held  against  them,  the  meager- 
ness  of  their  resources  and  the  smallness  of  their  numbers 
at  the  beginning  of  the  period  they  have  made  remarkable 
progress.  At  the  beginning  of  the  period  they  numbered 
scarcely  more  than  one  hundred  thousand  and  were  almost 


230  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

confined  to  English  speaking  peoples.  They  were  not  uni- 
fied by  any  one  great  leader,  were  not  equipped  with  edu- 
cational or  religious  institutions,  were  feared  because  of 
their  radical  democratic  views  in  religion  and  the  state, 
were  despised  because  of  their  meager  culture  and  were 
opposed  by  the  biblical  learning  of  the  world.  They  were 
without  any  organization  larger  than  the  district  associa- 
tion and  possessed  small  means  of  intercommunication. 

In  the  century  and  a  quarter  of  the  last  period  they  have 
increased  to  nearly  eight  million  communicants  who  have 
voluntarily  accepted  membership  in  the  regular  Baptist 
churches,  representing  a  population  of  not  less  than  twenty 
millions.  They  are  still  found  chiefly  among  English  speak- 
ing peoples  but  have  taken  root  and  are  growing  rapidly  in 
many  other  lands.  In  addition  to  Baptists  other  closely 
related  bodies  which  reject  pedobaptism  and  practice  only 
faith-baptism  number  at  least  two  millions  more  with  a 
population  of  six  millions.  One  further  point  must  be  con- 
sidered in  estimating  the  progress  of  faith-baptism  and 
that  is  the  fact  that  many  of  the  Pedobaptist  bodies  espe- 
cially in  America  administer  more  faith-  than  infant-bap- 
tisms. Summing  all  these  considerations,  the  total  progress 
in  this  direction  can  be  seen. 

During  the  period  Baptists  have  been  able  to  provide 
themselves  with  educational  and  missionary  equipment,  they 
have  produced  a  literature  of  interest  and  importance,  their 
fundamental  positions  and  peculiarities  are  generally  recog- 
nized by  the  world's  scholarship  as  scriptural,  and  they 
are  now  sharing  largely  in  the  Christian  work  of  missions 
and  reforms  throughout  the  world.  There  is  now  little  dis- 
position to  despise  them  or  minimize  their  significance. 

§140 

BRITISH    BAPTISTS 

The  two  greatest  groups  of  Baptists  are  in  Great  Britain 
and  America.     The  British  Baptists  have  been  compelled 


PROTESTANTISM    IN    THE    LAST    PERIOD  23 1 

to  meet  the  difficulties  due  to  the  presence  of  a  state  church 
possessed  of  traditional  social  prestige  and  power,  a  nation 
permeated  with  the  sacramental  and  sacerdotal  conceptions 
of  Christianity.  But  they  have  made  progress.  In  1792 
they  organized  the  "  Baptist  Missjonary  Society,"  thTlfi'fsr 
society  to  be  organized  by  "ProtesSnt  Christians  exclusively 
for  the  propagation  of  the  gospel  among  the  heathen.  It 
became  the  model  for  all  other  societies.  The  first  mis- 
sionary was  William  Carey  who  became  one  of  the  most 
notable  missionaries  in  the  history  of  Christianity.  Gradu- 
ally most  of  the  denomination  became  interested  in  this 
greatest  modern  Christian  undertaking  and  throughout  the 
century  they  have  been  doing  a  notable  work  in  many  parts 
of  the  world,  as  in  India,  Ceylon,  China,  the  Belgian  Congo, 
the  West  Indies,  and  at  various  points  on  continental  Eu- 
rope. 

In  1812  the  Calvinistic  Baptists  formed  the  Baptist  Union, 
which  however  did  not  become  effective  till  about  1832. 
The  General  or  Arminian  Baptists  held  apart  till  1891  when 
they  entered  the  Union  and  divisive  names  were  dropped. 

English  Baptists  had  from  the  start  left  the  question  of 
open  or  close  communion  to  the  judgment  of  the  individual 
churches.  In  the  earlier  part  of  the  nineteenth  century  a 
vigorous  agitation  in  favor  of  open  communion  arose  and 
eventually  led  most  of  the  English  churches  to  adopt  that 
practice  and  with  it  "  open  membership,"  that  is  the  ac- 
ceptance from  other  communions  of  members  who  had  not 
received  immersion  or  had  even  been  baptized  in  infancy. 
On  the  other  hand  the  Welsh  churches  held  to  the  stricter 
practice  which  has  characterized  American  Baptists,  but 
they  seem  to  be  relaxing  their  views  somewhat  in  recent 
years. 

In  191 5  there  were  about  four  hundred  thousand  Baptists 
in  England  and  Wales,  something  over  twenty  thousand  in 
Scotland  and  three  thousand  in  Ireland. 

British  Baptists  have  produced  several  men  of  note  during 
this  last  period  —  Robert   Robinson,   Robert   Hall,   C.   H. 


232  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

Spurgeon  and  Alexander  Maclaren  were  among  the  most 
notable  preachers  of  the  nineteenth  century.  William 
Carey  was  one  of  the  greatest  missionaries  of  all  time  and 
Andrew  Fuller  was  a  great  missionary  secretary  and 
theologian.  David  Lloyd-George  is  to-day  Prime  Minister 
and  perhaps  the  most  powerful  statesman  of  the  world. 

§141 

BAPTISTS    IN    THE    UNITED   STATES 

The  Baptists  have  had  their  greatest  success  in  the  United 
States,  doubtless  owing  to  religious  freedom  and  the  demo- 
cratic ideals  that  have  been  dominant  here.  At  the  be- 
ginning of  the  period  they  numbered  less  than  one  hundred 
thousand.  They  have  had  very  few  accessions  by  immigra- 
tion and  yet  they  now  number  more  than  six  million  com- 
municants in  the  regular  Baptist  body  besides  more  than 
a  hundred  thousand  in  smaller  bodies. 

The  conversion  of  Adoniram  Judson  and  Luther  Rice, 
two  young  Congregational  missionaries,  to  Baptist  views 
led  to  the  first  general  missionary  organization  in  1814  for 
the  prosecution  of  mission  work  in  foreign  lands,  Judson 
and  his  wife  becoming  the  first  missionaries  of  American 
Baptists.  Rice  returned  from  India  to  assist  in  arousing 
and  organizing  the  denomination,  a  task  to  which  he  devoted 
the  remainder  of  his  life. 

Unfortunately  the  lack  of  cultureand  the  rigid  Calvin- 
istic^fheologyoTlmahy  Baptists  especiaTTy"  in  the  SoutTi'Ted 
them  to  oppose  the  missionary  enterprise,  causing  a  serious 
schism  in  the  body.  It  began  about  1826  and  has  not  yet 
been  entirely  healed.  Naturally  it  greatly  retarded  the 
growth,  that  part  of  the  denomination  which  opposed  mis- 
sions stagnating  completely  and  gradually  dying.  They 
were  known  as  **  Hardshells,"  "  Anti-efifort  "  or  Primitive 
Baptists.  ^te— .--—». 

About  the  same  time  another  schism  was  precipitated  by 


PROTESTANTISM    IN    THE    LAST    PERIOD  233 

Alexander  Campbell,  a  Scotch  Presbyterian,  who  had 
adopted  Baptist  views  at  least  in  part,  had  been  baptized  by 
a  Baptist  preacher  and  had  organized  an  independent 
church  which  had  been  accepted  as  a  member  of  a  Baptist 
Association.  He  was  a  man  of  considerable  ability,  of 
great  skill  in  debate  and  of  tireless  energy.  He  gradually 
developed  the  view  that  remission  of  sin  is  granted  under 
ordinary  circumstances  only  in  baptism  and  that  the  Holy 
Spirit  operates  only  through  the  word.  These  views  with 
some  other  peculiarities  led  to  a  separation  in  which  he 
took  away  a  large  section  of  the  Baptist  body,  especially 
along  the  Ohio  River. 

The  slavery  agitation  led  to  the  withdrawal  of  the 
churches  of  the  South  from  the  general  Baptist  body  and 
the  organization  of  the  Southern  Baptist  Convention  in 
i§45.!_  The  American  Baptist  Publication  Society  had  been 
organized  in  1824  and  the  Baptist  Home  Mission  Society 
in  1832.  Southern  Baptists  had  cooperated  in  all  the  na- 
tional societies,  but  now  organized  upon  a  new  plan,  viz., 
one  convention  with  two  Boards.  They  continued  to  co- 
operate with  the  Publication  Society  till  1891  when  the 
Sunday  School  Board  was  added.  The  northern  societies 
were  finally  unified  on  the  same  plan  by  the  organization 
of  the  Northern  Baptist  Convention  in  1907. 

Both  Northern  and  Southern  Baptists  have  been  busily 
and  successfully  engaged  in  foreign  mission  work,  the  prin- 
cipal being  in  Italy,  Africa,  India,  China,  Japan,  Mexico, 
South  America  and  other  countries.  Baptists  have  been 
peculiarly  successful  in  winning  numbers,  but  they  are  not 
so  well  equipped  with  educational  and  similar  institutions 
as  could  be  wished.  This  is  especially  true  of  the  Southern 
Baptists.  According  to  the  statistics  of  191 5  there  are  in 
South  America  14,299,  in  Africa  17,899,  in  Asia  216,180 
communicants,  nearly  all  the  direct  and  exclusive  fruits  of 
American  and  English  Baptist  mission  work. 

During  the  nineteenth  century  American  Baptists  have 
organized  State  Conventions  throughout  the  entire  country ; 


234  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

they  have  founded  many  colleges  and  academies  of  a  high 
order,  while  Brown  University  and  the  University  of  Chi- 
cago are  among  the  leading  institutions  of  higher  learning 
in  the  world.  Baptists  have  produced  several  preachers  and 
scholars  of  note  and  have  exerted  considerable  influence 
upon  the  public  life  of  the  country,  though  their  influence  is 
hardly  commensurate  with  their  numbers.  They  have  four- 
teen theological  seminaries  some  of  which  are  among  the 
leading  institutions  of  this  kind  in  the  country.  Some  of 
the  more  notable  of  these  are  Newton,  Rochester,  Colgate, 
Crozer,  Southern  and  Southwestern.  On  the  foreign  field 
they  have  seminaries  at  Canton,  Shanghai,  Rome  and  Rio 
Janeiro.  Interest  in  higher  education  is  constantly  increas- 
ing. 

^'Ttn  the  British  colonies  have  considerable  bodies  of  Bap- 
.tists.  Those  of  Canada  number  about  120,000  communi- 
/ cants  and  constitute  one  of  the  noblest  and  most  efficient 
groups  of  Baptists  in  the  world.  Australia,  New  Zealand 
and  South  Africa  all  have  small  but  aggressive  and  success- 
ful bodies  of  Baptists. 

(E)     THE  CONGREGATIONALISTS 
§  142 

BRITISH    CONGREGATIONALISTS 

The  Congregationalists  have  prospered  during  the  last 
period.  In  England  there  are  nearly  half  a  million  with  a 
few  thousand  in  Scotland  and  Ireland.  They  are  flourish- 
ing in  all  the  British  colonies,  and  are  found  in  most  of  the 
countries  of  continental  Europe,  particularly  in  Sweden 
where  there  are  more  than  100,000. 

The  Congregationalists  of  England  and  Wales  have  pros- 
pered since  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century.  They 
hold  firmly  to  their  church  independence  and  are  frequently 
called  the  Independents.     But  they  also  appreciate  the  im- 


PROTESTANTISM    IN    THE   LAST    PERIOD  235 

portance  of  cooperation  and  in  1831  organized  the  "  Congre- 
gational Union  of  England  and  Wales  "  for  purposes  of  de- 
liberation and  advice,  at  the  same  time  carefully  guarding 
the  independence  of  the  churches.  Within  the  last  fifty 
years  associations  and  local  councils  have  been  organized, 
and  quite  recently  they  have  formed  a  national  "  Council." 
English  Congregationalists  have  been  active  in  missions 
and  other  forms  of  service.  The  ''  London  Missionary  So- 
ciety," organized  in  1795  by  several  denominations,  is  nov^ 
Congregational  and  is  one  of  the  most  important  missionary 
organizations  in  the  world.  It  carries  on  extensive  work 
in  South  Africa,  Madagascar,  India,  China,  the  South  Sea 
Islands  and  the  West  Indies.  They  have  also  been  leaders 
in  all  forms  of  home  missions  and  domestic  reforms.  They 
have  produced  many  scholars,  preachers,  statesmen  and 
authors  of  note,  and  in  general  have  contributed  largely 
to  the  intellectual  as  well  as  to  the  practical  Christian  life 
of  England. 

§143 

AMERICAN    CONGREGATIONALISTS 

American  Congregationalists  have  been  behind  their  Eng- 
lish brethren  in  no  respect.  During  the  last  period  they 
have  grown  rapidly  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  an  ar- 
rangement, made  in  1801  with  the  Presbyterians  as  to  co- 
operation, has  cost  them,  they  assert,  not  less  than  2,000 
churches  as  they  have  spread  westward.  Early  in  the  nine- 
teenth century  a  large  section  of  the  denomination  in  east- 
ern Massachusetts,  especially  in  and  around  Boston,  went 
over  to  Unitarianism  taking  with  them  Harvard,  the  most 
important  educational  institution  of  the  country.  This  was 
a  serious  defection,  but  did  not  stop  Congregational  growth. 

American  Congregationalists  have  led  all  other  denomina- 
tions in  their  emphasis  on  education  and  the  effectiveness 
of  their  service  in  that  direction.  The  mere  mention  of 
some  of  the  more  important  of  their  institutions  will  serve 


236  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

to  indicate  the  great  contribution  of  this  denomination  in 
this  direction:  Yale,  Harvard  (originally,  but  now  Unita- 
rian), Amherst,  Bowdoin,  Dartmouth,  Williams,  Oberlin, 
and  for  women  Mt.  Holyoke,  Smith  and  Wellesley  and  for 
the  Negroes,  Fisk  and  Atlanta  universities.  On  the  mis- 
sion field  they  have  Robert  College  at  Constantinople  and 
Doshisha  in  Japan.  Andover,  Chicago,  Hartford,  Ober- 
lin and  Yale  are  some  of  their  theological  seminaries.  In 
addition  to  these  institutions  of  higher  learning  they  have 
many  academies  and  colleges  of  lower  grade  doing  the  high- 
est quality  of  work.  This  educational  work  has  been  car- 
ried on  in  a  broad  nonsectarian  spirit  almost  uniformly. 
It  is  probable  that  the  Congregationalists  have  laid  less 
emphasis  on  denominationalism  than  any  other  similar  body 
in  America. 

They  have  produced  many  scholars,  literary  men  and 
preachers  of  note,  among  the  latter  Henry  Ward  Beecher, 
perhaps  America's  most  famous  preacher.  A  great  stream 
of  literature  has  continually  poured  from  the  Congrega- 
tional presses. 

They  are  now  organized  into  local  **  conferences,"  State 
"  Associations "  which  meet  annually,  and  since  1871  a 
"  Congregational  Council  "  meeting  triennially  (since  1913 
biennially),  and  covering  the  entire  country.  These  bodies 
have  only  advisory  and  deliberative  powers,  the  local 
churches  being  entirely  independent  and  self-governing. 
Their  fundamental  principles  of  government  as  stated  by 
themselves  are  ''  freedom  and  fellowship,  a  freedom  which 
leaves  each  local  church  free  in  its  separate  affairs,  a  fel- 
lowship which  unites  all  the  churches  for  mutual  care  and 
cooperant  action."  The  Congregationalists  practice  infant- 
as well  as  faith-baptism  and  employ  any  mode,  not  regard- 
ing this  as  important,  but  church  membership  begins  only 
at  conversion.  Their  worship  is  simple  with  emphasis  on 
preaching.  In  recent  years  they  have  shown  decided  tend- 
encies toward  liberal  theology. 

The  Congregationalists  were  the  first  Christian  body  in 


PROTESTANTISM    IN    THE    LAST    PERIOD  237 

this  country  to  feel  the  foreign  missionary  impulse  and  or- 
ganize for  that  work.  The  initial  impulse  was  given  by  a 
group  of  students  at  Williams  College  and  later  at  Andover 
Theological  Seminary.  As  a  result  of  their  urgent  activity 
the  "  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Mis- 
sions "  was  organized  in  1810  and  sent  out  its  first  missiona- 
ries in  1 81 2.  During  the  century  this  Board  has  been  one 
of  the  most  active  and  efficient  in  the  world.  It  now  has 
missionaries  in  Mexico,  Spain,  Austria,  Turkey,  the  Bal- 
kans, Ceylon,  India,  China,  Japan,  Central  Africa,  the  South 
Sea  Islands  and  elsewhere.  Emphasis  has  been  laid  on 
schools,  hospitals  and  the  other  Christian  institutions  and 
as  a  consequence  their  missions  are  now  unusually  well 
equipped  and  ready  for  a  greater  work  in  the  new  era  that 
is  opening. 

(F)     THE  METHODISTS 
§144 

INTRODUCTION 

The  Methodist  church  in  American  began  its  independent 
existence  in  the  year  1784.  But  in  England  it  remained  a 
party  in  the  Anglican  church  until  after  the  death  of  John 
Wesley  in  1791.  He  had  opposed  separate  existence  very 
strenuously  and  had  died  in  the  communion  of  the  state 
church  notwithstanding  much  friction  and  bitterness  before 
his  death.  After  his  death  the  sentiment  for  separation 
which  had  long  been  restrained  by  his  personal  influence 
quickly  had  its  way  and  separate  organization  was  effected 
in  1795. 

In  general  the  Methodists  have  prospered  greatly  espe- 
cially among  English  speaking  peoples.  They  are  now  ac- 
tively engaged  in  foreign  missionary  work  though  they 
were  rather  later  than  other  Christian  bodies  in  beginning. 
They  have  been  a  great  popular  denomination,  accomplish- 
ing their  service  by  evangelism  at  home  rather  than  by 


238  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

education.  Consequently  they  have  not  produced  the 
schools,  literature  and  scholars  which  some  of  the  other 
denominations  can  show. 

Their  theology,  which  has  not  been  much  emphasized, 
has  been  Arminianism  of  a  rather  radical  type  gradually  de- 
veloping towards  Pelagianism  which  is  now  the  official 
teaching  of  the  Southern  Methodist  church  in  the  United 
States.  They  have  been  emotional,  given  to  noisy  evangel- 
ism in  the  local  church  and  in  camp  meetings,  the  source 
of  most  of  the  so-called  *'  holiness  "  parties.  They  have 
been  afflicted  by  many  serious  schisms  due  to  questions  of 
method  more  than  to  doctrine.  In  recent  years  a  strong 
tendency  to  friendliness  among  the  various  Methodist  par- 
ties has  resulted  in  several  important  unions  both  in  Eng- 
land and  America. 

§145 

METHODISM    IN    ENGLAND 

The  death  ot  Wesley  was  quickly  followed  by  complete 
separation  from  the  state  church.  Already  the  movement 
had  been  divided  into  Calvinistic  and  Wesleyan  Methodists. 
The  former  have  never  been  very  powerful,  but  the  latter 
have  been  the  parent  church  of  English  Methodism.  The 
Wesleyan  Methodist  Church  was  rigidly  ecclesiastical,  per- 
mitting no  representation  to  the  laity  and  exercising  an  over- 
sight as  strict  as  that  of  the  Jesuits.  As  the  body  grew 
and  expanded  this  feature  of  its  life  led  to  many  schisms. 
The  first  was  in  1797  when  the  Methodist  New  Connection 
was  organized  with  lay  representation  in  its  conferences. 
In  1810  a  party  who  insisted  on  employing  the  camp-meeting 
methods  which  were  at  that  time  so  popular  and  effective  in 
America,  were  expelled  and  formed  the  Primitive  Metho- 
dist Connection.  In  181 5  Wm.  O'Bryan,  who  had  been 
expelled  for  overzealous  evangelism,  organized  the  Bible 
Christians,  and  in  1828  when  an  organ  was  forced  on  a 
church  in  Leeds  they  withdrew  and  organized  the  Wesleyan 


PROTESTANTISM    IN    THE   LAST    PERIOD  239 

Protestant  Methodists.  And  so  the  disposition  to  divide 
has  continued.  But  in  1857  several  groups  united  to  form 
the  United  Free  Churches  and  in  1907  another  union  took 
place  by  which  the  United  Methodist  Church  vi^as  formed. 
Notwithstanding  this  unfortunate  tendency  to  division 
Methodists  have  been  an  important  factor  in  English  re- 
ligious life  and  have  made  some  real  progress.  They  have 
sufifered  all  the  difficulties  which  meet  a  free  church  in  a 
country  like  England,  but  they  have  carried  their  work  into 
the  colonies  and  into  many  of  the  great  mission  fields  oc- 
cupied by  modern  Protestants.  The  Wesleyan  Methodists 
are  by  far  the  largest  body,  numbering  in  Great  Britain  and 
Ireland  over  half  a  million.  The  next  largest  body  is  the 
Primitive  Methodist  Church  which  has  about  two  hundred 
thousand.  All  told  the  British  Methodists  of  all  kinds  at 
home,  in  the  colonies  and  on  the  mission  fields  have  nearly 
a  million  and  a  half  members.  British  Methodists  have 
"  superintendents "  rather  than  bishops,  and  do  not  call 
themselves  episcopal. 

§146 

AMERICAN    METHODISM 

It  is  in  the  United  States  that  Methodism  has  had  its 
greatest  triumphs.  Its  schisms  have  been  fewer,  while  its 
theology,  methods,  type  of  Christian  life  and  form  of  church 
government  have  admirably  fitted  it  to  deal  with  the  pioneer 
and  fluid  social  conditions  which  have  obtained  in  America 
during  this  period.  Its  itinerant  ministry  have  reached 
every  nook  and  corner  of  the  country  v^ith  a  "  free,  full  and 
present  salvation,"  full  of  emotion  and  vocal  expression.  It 
has  used  all  its  resources  of  power  in  men  and  women  to 
a  remarkable  degree,  and  as  a  consequence  has  grown  more 
rapidly  than  any  other  Protestant  body.  It  has  been  and 
is  one  of  the  great  popular  religious  bodies  of  the  country. 
Beginning  late  in  the  eighteenth  century  it  now  claims  about 
seven  and  a  half  million  communicants  in  the  United  States 


240  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

alone.  Of  these  nearly  one  and  a  half  millions  belong  to  the 
various  Negro  Methodist  churches.  The  two  greatest 
bodies  are  the  "  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  "  (northern) 
with  three  and  a  half  millions  and  the  "  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church,  South,"  with  two  million  members.  The 
only  other  considerable  body  of  white  Methodists  is  the 
Methodist  Protestant  Church.  There  are  in  all  sixteen 
Methodist  churches  in  the  United  States  each  entirely  in- 
dependent of  the  others. 

Methodists  are  fairly  well  equipped  with  educational  and 
other  benevolent  institutions.  They  are  actively  engaged 
in  missionary  work  at  home  and  abroad  and  are  among  the 
foremost  in  all  efforts  at  moral  and  religious  reforms.  The 
educational  standards  of  their  ministry  are  not  so  high  as 
some  others  and  the  fervor  and  effectiveness  of  their  evan- 
gelism seems  to  be  on  the  wane.  They  have  two  great  pub- 
lishing houses  and  are  pouring  a  stream  of  literature  of 
various  kinds  from  their  presses.  They  have  produced  sev- 
eral men  of  note  for  scholarship  and  ability  as  preachers. 
The  bishops  are  without  dioceses,  but  act  as  superintend- 
ents of  the  entire  church.  They  have  great  power  over 
the  so-called  '*  traveling  preachers,"  especially  in  the  South- 
ern church,  appointing  them  to  positions  annually  and  send- 
ing them  where  they  will.  The  General  Conference  of  each 
church  is  the  legislative  and  governing  body  for  the  whole 
of  that  church  and  meets  every  four  years.  The  South- 
ern Methodist  Church  was  organized  in  Louisville,  Ky.,  in 
1845  ^s  a  result  of  the  agitation  over  slavery.  At  the  Gen- 
eral Conference  of  the  northern  church  in  1900  women  were 
admitted  to  membership  and  the  lay  and  clerical  member- 
ship were  equalized.  At  the  same  Conference  all  limitations 
as  to  the  length  of  the  pastorates  were  abolished  and  the 
matter  was  left  to  the  judgment  of  the  bishops  in  each 
case.  The  time  limit  in  the  Southern  church  is  still  four 
years. 

The  Methodists  carry  on  mission  work  in  Africa,  India, 
China,  Japan,  South  America,  Korea,  the  South  Sea  Islands 


PROTESTANTISM    IN   THE   LAST   PERIOD  24I 

and  many  of  the  European  countries.  These  missions  are 
usually  well  equipped  with  schools,  hospitals  and  other  ad- 
juncts of  the  most  effective  missionary  service. 


(G)     AMERICAN  CHRISTIANITY 
§147 

IN   GENERAL 

American  Christianity  is  the  most  diverse  and  complex 
in  the  world.  Old  world  forms  have  been  transplanted  to 
this  country  and  many  new  types  have  been  developed  on 
our  soil.  The  voluntary  system  has  given  opportunity  for 
innumerable  schisms  and  has  left  a  larger  part  of  the 
people  outside  all  church  relations  than  is  found  in  any 
other  country.  But  notwithstanding  these  facts,  perhaps 
because  of  them,  there  is,  it  is  believed,  less  bitterness  of 
religious  feeling,  more  religious  activity  and  a  stronger  and 
more  vigorous  humane  sentiment  than  in  any  other  country 
in  the  world.  And  this  is  true  notwithstanding  the  fact 
that  recent  years  have  seen  such  an  enormous  influx  of 
foreigners  that  the  country  has  not  as  yet  been  able  to 
absorb  and  digest  them  thoroughly.  Our  public  school  sys- 
tem is  the  melting  pot.  The  second  generation  of  immi- 
grants usually  speak  English  only  and  have  thoroughly  im- 
bibed the  peculiar  American  view  of  life. 

The  larger  Christian  bodies  have  already  been  dealt  with 
at  some  length.  Of  these  bodies  the  Roman  and  Greek 
Catholic  still  have  much  of  the  characteristics  of  a  foreign 
institution.  A  large  part  of  the  membership  and  a  still 
larger  proportion  of  the  priesthood  are  of  foreign  birth. 
The  Greek  Catholic,  Armenian,  Syrian  and  other  oriental 
churches  are  almost  wholly  foreign.  Among  the  Protestant 
churches  the  Lutherans  and  "  Reformed "  are  the  only 
bodies  that  continue  much  of  their  foreign  characteristics. 
All  others  have  been  thoroughly  Americanized.     In  recent 


242  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

years  a  distinct  effort  has  been  made  by  Germany  to  pre- 
vent the  assimilation  of  German  immigrants  to  American 
ideals  and  institutions;  the  success  of  this  German  propa- 
ganda would  perpetuate  a  very  alien  element  in  the  life 
of  our  nation. 

§148 

OTHER   CHRISTIAN    AND   QUASI-CHRISTIAN    BODIES 

It  is  impossible  for  lack  of  space  to  notice  the  multitude 
of  smaller  bodies  of  Christians  in  the  United  States,  each 
of  them  more  or  less  important  for  the  life  of  our  country 
and  the  progress  of  the  kingdom  of  God,  each  expressing 
the  religious  convictions  of  some  group  of  people.  Only 
the  more  important  of  those  which  have  had  their  birth  on 
American  soil  and  in  some  way  seem  to  demand  some  at- 
tention will  be  noticed  here. 

I.  The  ''Disciples"  or  ''Christians."  The  work  of  Mr. 
Alexander  Campbell  in  connection  with  the  Baptists  has  al- 
ready been  touched  upon.  Soon  after  he  and  his  followers 
separated  from  the  Baptists  they  succeeded  in  uniting  with 
similar  movements  started  by  Barton  W.  Stone,  and  others 
who  had  called  themselves  Christians.  This  explains  the 
confusion  as  to  name.  The  chief  article  in  their  program 
is  the  union  of  all  Christians  on  the  basis  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment Scriptures.  This  in  their  view  involves  the  rejection 
of  creeds,  hierarchies,  elaborate  ecclesiastical  machinery  and 
ritual,  denominational  names  and  whatever  else  is  not  scrip- 
tural, and  conversely  the  adoption  of  a  scriptural  name, 
baptism  on  the  basis  of  repentance  and  faith  and  for  the 
remission  of  sins,  democratic  church  government,  etc. 

In  their  earlier  history  they  were  excessively  polemical 
and  belligerent,  but  more  recently  many  of  them  have 
dropped  this  characteristic  in  a  measure  and  are  living  in 
peace  with  their  neighbors.  They  have  been  wonderfully 
vigorous  and  active  and  have  grown  very  rapidly.  They 
are  Arminian  in  theology  in  so  far  as  they  can  be  said  to 


PROTESTANTISM    IN    THE    LAST    PERIOD  243 

have  a  theology,  and  practice  **  open  communion,"  cele- 
brating the  supper  every  Lord's  day.  To  put  their  object 
in  their  own  words,  ''  We  plead  for  the  restoration  of  primi- 
tive Christianity  —  its  name,  its  faith,  its  ordinances  and 
its  Hfe."  In  191 5  they  reported  a  membership  of  1,142,206 
in  the  United  States  and  Canada.  They  are  conducting 
missions  in  Africa,  Australasia,  India,  China,  Japan,  Russia 
and  other  countries  and  claim  in  their  foreign  fields  nearly 
seventy-five  thousand  communicants. 

They  make  no  distinction  between  clergy  and  laity  and 
are  congregational  in  church  government.  They  are  or- 
ganized with  district,  state  and  national  organizations  for 
the  promotion  of  their  general  missionary  and  benevolent 
work.  Most  of  this  is  done  through  "  The  American 
Christian  Missionary  Society  "  with  headquarters  in  Cin- 
cinnati. 

2.  The  ''  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter  Day  Saints  " 
or  "  Mormons,"  was  founded  by  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  at 
Fayette,  N.  Y.,  in  the  year  1830.  Smith  was  born  and 
reared  in  Vermont  in  the  midst  of  poverty,  ignorance  and 
superstition.  He  early  began  to  see  visions,  finally  alleging 
that  the  so-called  Book  of  Mormon  had  been  revealed  to 
him  written  on  gold  plates  in  reformed  Egyptian  characters  ; 
with  the  plates  were  two  crystals  by  means  of  which  he 
had  been  able  to  make  a  translation.  The  Book  which  is  re- 
garded as  the  foundation  of  Mormonism  was  published  and 
the  church  organized  in  1830.  In  1831  the  church  moved  to 
Kirtland,  O.,  thence  to  Jackson  County,  Mo.,  then  back  to 
Nauvoo,  111.,  and  finally  in  1847  to  Utah,  where  the  ma- 
jority still  reside.  Everywhere  they  were  mobbed  and 
roughly  handled.  Smith  and  his  brother  Hyram  being  killed 
in  the  jail  at  Carthage,  111.,  in  1844.  The  reasons  for  this 
persecution  were  partly  religious,  partly  political  and  social 
and  partly  economic. 

The  Mormons  have  prospered  at  Salt  Lake  City  which 
they  founded.  They  have  transformed  the  entire  region 
into  a   fertile   and   productive   agricultural   section.     They 


244  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

now  number  330,000  communicants  while  the  ''  Reorgan- 
ized "  branch  reports  67,000.  Mormons  reside  chiefly  in 
Utah  but  are  also  found  in  surrounding  states  and  have 
colonies  in  Mexico  and  Canada.  They  early  began  foreign 
mission  work  and  have  brought  many  converts  from  Euro- 
pean countries. 

In  organization  they  are  a  great  hierarchy  in  which  prac- 
tically every  man  holds  some  office.  They  claim  a  continu- 
ous gift  of  prophecy  through  their  president,  regarding  his 
revelations,  together  with  the  Bible  ("  when  properly  trans- 
lated ")  and  the  Book  of  Mormon,  as  the  revealed  will  of 
God.  Their  view  of  God  is  more  heathen  than  Christian; 
they  believe  in  Jesus  Christ  and  forgiveness  through  him ; 
repentance,  faith  and  baptism  by  immersion  for  the  remis- 
sion of  sins. 

In  1843  Smith  had  a  revelation  not  only  approving  but 
recommending  polygamy,  which  was  practiced  till  1890  when 
under  pressure  from  the  United  States  Government  it  was 
suspended  but  not  repudiated.  Smith  also  taught  that 
marriages  were  sealed  in  heaven  and  were  an  eternal  rela- 
tion. In  mission  work  they  go  in  pairs  and  do  most  of 
their  proselyting  in  conversations.  They  have  at  Salt  Lake 
City  a  "  tabernacle  "  which  is  open  to  the  public  and  a 
"  temple  "  to  which  none  but  approved  Mormons  are  ad- 
mitted. 

As  a  social,  political  and  economic  system  Mormonism  has 
had  a  remarkable  history,  though  its  political  history  now 
seems  to  be  at  an  end.  Religiously  and  morally  its  in- 
fluence has  been  bad  and  it  has  contributed  nothing  to  the 
intellectual  or  spiritual  riches  of  our  country. 

3.  The  Church  of  Christ  Scientist,  was  founded  by  Mary 
Baker  G.  Eddy,  who  claimed  to  have  discovered  its  prin- 
ciples in  1866,  published  the  foundation  book  '*  Science  and 
Health  with  Key  to  the  Scriptures"  in  1875  and  founded 
the  First  Church  now  known  as  the  "  Mother  Church  "  in 
Boston  in  1879.  After  a  time  the  sect  grew  rapidly,  and 
while  its  exact  numbers  are  not  known  it  claims  in  1907, 


PROTESTANTISM    IN   THE   LAST   PERIOD  245 

the  last  date  for  which  figures  are  given,  85,096  in  the 
United  States  with  members  in  many  other  countries.  They 
are  confined  to  the  cities  and  are  most  numerous  in  the 
large  cities  in  the  northern  part  of  the  United  States  and 
in  England.  They  come  almost  exclusively  from  the  com- 
fortable middle  classes.  Great  numbers  have  been  neuro- 
tics and  believe  themselves  to  have  been  healed  of  some 
disease. 

Mrs.  Eddy  was  a  prolific  writer,  as  well  as  lecturer, 
teacher  and  healer.  She  amassed  a  fortune  in  a  com- 
paratively short  time  through  the  enormous  charges  made 
for  all  her  services  to  sufifering  humanity.  Her  early  life 
was  a  fight  with  disease,  her  temper  remained  uncertain, 
her  will  imperious,  her  personality  and  life  unattractive. 
Her  education  was  meager  and  her  writings  are  full  of 
crudities,  crass  contradictions,  and  statements  which  to 
others  than  Christian  Scientists  are  blasphemies.  At  times 
she  talks  as  if  she  regarded  herself  as  the  third  person  in 
the  Trinity.  She  claimed  to  have  r^eived  the  principles 
of  Christian  Science  by  direct  revelation  from  God,  saying 
of  "  Science  and  Health  "  that  God  was  its  author  while 
she  was  "  only  a  scribe,  echoing  the  harmonies  of  heaven 
in  divine  metaphysics." 

The  central  tenet  of  the  system  is  the  ''  Allness  of  God," 
the  unreality  and  nothingness  of  matter,  evil,  sin  and  suf- 
fering. All  is  God  and  God  is  good,  therefore  all  is  good. 
Evil  and  suffering  are  the  figments  of  mortal  mind  and  have 
no  existence  outside  man's  mind.  All  causes  are  mental, 
"  every  effect  a  mental  phenomenon."  As  Mrs.  Eddy  never 
seemed  settled  as  to  her  convictions  concerning  her  own 
position  in  the  divine  order,  so  she  never  seemed  certain 
as  to  what  position  she  ought  to  ascribe  to  Jesus  Christ. 
Often  she  employs  with  regard  to  him  the  language  of 
orthodox  Christianity;  again  she  denies  to  him  all  signifi- 
cance beyond  that  of  a  teacher ;  sometimes  she  distinguishes 
between  Jesus  and  the  Christ  after  the  fashion  of  the 
Gnostics  of  early  Christian  history. 


246  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

The  system  is  essentially  pantheistic,  though  this  is  de- 
nied by  its  devotees.  It  may  be  regarded  as  crude  philoso- 
phy, a  system  of  mental  therapeutics  or  a  new  religion.  It 
claims  to  be  based  on  the  Bible,  but  all  rational  interpreta- 
tion is  made  impossible  by  her  ''  Key  to  the  Scriptures," 
which  may  lock  but  never  opens  the  Scriptures.  The  sys- 
tem destroys  the  Christian  conception  of  God,  the  historical 
character  and  atoning  work  of  Jesus  Christ,  makes  all 
Christian  history  and  thought  a  lie,  obscures  the  distinction 
between  good  and  evil  thereby  weakening  the  ethical  sense, 
renders  all  efforts  for  the  relief  of  human  want  and  suffer- 
ing absurd,  denies  the  resurrection  of  the  dead  and  clouds 
belief  in  personal  immortality.  Some  of  its  writings  seem 
to  have  originated  in  the  bedlam  of  a  mad  house.  And 
yet  it  has  power.     Why? 

Mainly  because  of  its  resolute  assertion  of  the  spirituality 
of  the  universe  against  the  materialism  of  the  age  in  which 
we  live ;  its  invincible  optimism  in  the  midst  of  the  pessim- 
ism which  has  afflicted  the  world  for  half  a  century ;  its 
healing  power  in  certain  classes  of  functional  diseases,  which 
is  perhaps  its  greatest  attraction  as  shown  by  the  testimony 
of  its  members ;  its  elimination  of  all  ecclesiasticism,  lay- 
ing all  responsibility  for  its  propagation  on  laymen  and 
women ;  the  democratic  nature  of  its  public  services ;  and 
finally  the  strange  personality  of  Mrs.  Eddy  who  dominated 
people  as  if  they  were  hypnotized. 

The  "  Mother  Church  "  at  Boston  is  the  controlling  body, 
but  the  branch  churches  and  societies  have  their  own  in- 
dividual government.  There  are  no  pastors  in  the  ordinary 
sense  of  the  term,  no  ordinations,  no  ordinances.  There 
are  "  readers,"  men  and  women,  who  must  be  approved  by 
the  "  Mother  Church "  and  are  elected  for  three  years. 
These  use  lessons  that  are  prepared  and  sent  out  from 
Boston.  For  the  general  propaganda  '*  lecturers  "  are  em- 
ployed and  sent  out  from  Boston  to  every  church  at  least 
once  a  year.  Much  use  is  made  of  tracts  and  other  publica- 
tions.    All  together  it  is  one  of  the  strangest  phenomena 


PROTESTANTISM    IN    THE    LAST    PERIOD  247 

that  has  appeared  in   Christian   history,   the   only   religion 
founded  by  a  woman. 

4.  The  Salvation  Army  was  founded  by  William  Booth, 
an  English  preacher  of  the  Methodist  New  Connection.' 
In  prosecuting  his  evangelistic  work  he  formed  plans  and 
adopted  methods  that  were  too  unconventional  and  radical 
to  be  acceptable  to  his  church.  Accordingly  in  1865  he 
began  independent  open  air  preaching  in  the  worst  section 
of  east  London.  Four  years  later  his  work  was  enlarged 
and  extended  and  given  the  name  of  the  Christian  Mission. 
In  1878  he  reorganized  it  on  a  military  basis  and  gave  the 
new  organization  the  name  of  ''  Salvation  Army." 

Its  organization  and  nomenclature  are  thoroughly  mili- 
tary. Booth  was  the  general  until  his  death  in  1912  when 
he  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Bramwell.  "International 
Headquarters  "  are  located  in  London ;  the  Army  is  divided 
into  "Territories"  under  "commissioners,"  these  into 
"  Provinces,"  these  again  into  ''  Divisions  "  and  finally  these 
into  local  stations  called  "  Corps."  In  this  vast  organiza- 
tion all  the  various  grades  of  officers  of  an  ordinary  army 
are  found.  The  organization  has  a  uniform,  a  flag,  and  in 
general  the  paraphernalia  of  an  army,  and  is  equally  as 
autocratic   in  government. 

Men  and  women  have  exactly  the  same  opportunities 
and  responsibilities,  the  only  distinction  being  based  on 
ability,  piety  and  faithfulness.  In  doctrine  it  is  thoroughly 
orthodox  and  evangelistic.  Its  preaching  is  simple,  direct 
and  brief,  an  effort  to  impress  upon  the  hearers  the  fact  and 
the  ruin  of  sin,  the  possibility  of  immediate  and  triumphant 
salvation  through  Jesus  Christ,  the  urgency  of  the  call. 
Much  of  the  preaching  consists  of  testimonies  to  the  power 
of  God  as  experienced  in  the  life  of  the  individual.  The 
purpose  of  the  organization  is  to  reach  the  religiously, 
morally  and  materially  destitute  which  the  churches  do  not 
and  apparently  cannot  reach.  It  is  confined  to  the  cities, 
and  is  now  doing  work  in  nearly  all  the  countries  of  the 
world. 


248  THE    COURSE    OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

Its  work  is  of  two  kinds  —  religious  and  relief.  It  is  not 
a  church,  has  no  ordinances  or  ordination.  Its  converts 
are  not  counted  as  members  except  as  they  become  *'  sol- 
diers," that  is  "  workers,"  in  the  cause.  Many  of  its  con- 
verts unite  with  the  churches.  It  obeys  the  Master's  com- 
mand to  "  go  "  by  preaching  on  the  streets  where  there  are 
teeming  multitudes  that  never  enter  the  churches,  and  in 
rented  halls,  theaters  and  other  buildings  as  they  can  be 
gotten,  in  those  sections  of  the  city  that  are  deserted  by 
the  churches. 

Their  relief  work  has  attained  enormous  proportions  and 
a  great  variety  of  forms,  such  as  industrial  homes  for  men 
and  women,  maternity  homes,  cheap  hotels,  rescue  homes 
for  fallen  women  and  drunkards,  employment  agencies, 
Christmas  dinners  for  the  poor,  day  nurseries  for  the  chil- 
dren of  working  mothers,  and  others  too  numerous  to 
mention. 

In  its  methods  the  Salvation  Army  discards  all  the  usual 
conventions  which  surround  religious  efforts  and  resorts 
to  every  possible  means  of  attracting  and  holding  attention 
—  brass  bands,  drums,  popular  songs,  flags,  etc.  For  this 
and  other  reasons  even  the  church  people  at  first  looked 
askance  or  even  opposed  it,  but  long  since  it  has  conquered 
its  enemies  and  is  now  generally  recognized  as  one  of  the 
most  beneficent  institutions  of  our  day. 

5.  Other  bodies  which  can  only  be  named  are  Adventists 
(six  bodies),  with  106,347  communicants;  Brethren  Dunk- 
ards,  (4  bodies),  123,844;  Eastern  Orthodox  (7  bodies), 
467,500;  Christians,  113,887;  Churches  of  God  (Winebren- 
narian),  28,650;  Evangelical  (2  bodies),  205,255;  Friends 
(Quakers,  4  bodies),  120,712;  German  Evangelical  Protes- 
tant, 34,704;  German  Evangelical  Synod,  264,097;  Scan- 
dinavian Evangelical  (3  bodies),  72,900;  Mennonites  (12 
bodies),  61,331;  Pentecostal  (2  bodies),  33,409;  Reformed 
(4  bodies),  502,602;  Spiritualists,  200,000;  Unitarians,  70,- 
542;  United  Brethren  (2  bodies),  360,387;  Universalists, 
55,000;  Independent  Congregations  48,673.     In  addition  to 


PROTESTANTISM    IN    THE   LAST    PERIOD  249 

these,  each  of  which  counts  more  than  twenty-five  thousand 
communicants,  there  are  many  smaller  bodies  numbering 
less  than  this.  All  together  the  statistics  of  the  last  Year 
Book  of  the  Federal  Council  gives  the  number  of  Christian 
communicants  as  38,380,670. 

There  are  more  than  two  and  a  half  million  Jews  in  the 
United  States  of  whom  nearly  half  live  in  New  York  City. 
Moreover  they  exercise  an  influence  on  our  social,  economic 
and  political  life  out  of  all  proportion  to  their  numbers. 

§149 

SOME  OTHER   ORGANIZATIONS 

I.  The  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  was  organized 
in  London  in  1844  by  George  Williams  among  dry  goods 
clerks.  It  was  intended  to  care  for  the  moral,  religious  and 
social  welfare  of  young  men  who  are  without  homes  in  the 
city.  This  original  purpose  has  been  enlarged  as  the  or- 
ganization has  spread  and  developed  until  its  scope  now 
includes  the  general  welfare  of  young  men  of  every  class 
everywhere.  It  provides  for  clean  and  healthy  bodies  by 
facilities  for  exercise  and  bathing  under  competent  super- 
vision, and  at  places  for  cheap  rooms  under  the  most  san- 
itary and  morally  sound  conditions ;  it  also  seeks  to  elevate 
the  social  and  amusement  life  of  young  men,  believing  that 
these  are  matters  of  the  highest  importance. 

It  provides  a  common  meeting  place  for  evangelical 
Christian  forces,  assists  in  evangehstic  efforts  and  occa- 
sionally attempts  campaigns  of  its  own,  seeks  to  train 
young  men  for  more  effective  work  in  all  lines  of  Chris- 
tian endeavor.  It  has  afforded  a  great  opportunity  for 
the  layman  who  wished  to  give  himself  to  Christian  service. 
It  now  has  many  distinct  departments  such  as  boys'  work, 
railroad  work,  student  work,  army  and  navy  work,  Negro 
work,  county  work,  etc.  It  has  become  an  educational  in- 
stitution of  considerable  importance,  not  only  along  relig- 


250  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

ious  lines  but  in  many  other  directions.  All  the  leading 
countries  of  the  world  now  have  organizations  which  have 
become  one  of  the  chief  means  of  recommending  the  prac- 
tical truths  and  ideals  of  Christianity  to  public  attention. 
In  1914  there  were  in  all  the  world  8,906  associations  with 
more  than  a  million  members,  more  than  five  thousand  offi- 
cers and  1,608  buildings  valued  at  $90,385,728.  The  local 
associations,  whose  active  members  must  be  members  of 
evangelical  churches  and  whose  associate  members  must  be 
young  men  of  good  moral  character,  are  entirely  independent 
and  autonomous,  owning  their  property,  electing  their  offi- 
cers and  managing  all  their  affairs.  The  International  Com- 
mittee with  headquarters  at  New  York  provides  literature, 
text-books,  etc.,  whose  use,  however,  is  not  obligatory. 
There  is  also  a  World's  Conference  with  a  Central  Inter- 
national Committee  at  Geneva,  Switzerland.  Catholics  have 
a  somewhat  similar  organization  under  strict  ecclesiastical 
control  called  Young  Men's  Institutes. 

The  Young  Women's  Christian  Association  also  originated 
in  England  when  two  separate  organizations  were  formed  in 
1855  for  the  benefit  of  homeless  young  women.  These  or- 
ganizations were  later  united  to  form  the  Young  Women's 
Christian  Association.  In  organization,  aims  and  methods 
it  is  closely  conformed  to  the  men's  organization.  More- 
over its  history  has  been  very  similar.  Its  work  has  now 
spread  over  the  world  and  is  growing  rapidly  in  all  its  de- 
partments. 

2.  Young  People's  Societies  in  the  churches  are  a  marked 
feature  of  present  day  Christian  life  especially  in  America. 
They  arose  as  the  result  of  a  feeling  that  the  young  people 
of  a  church  should  be  trained  in  the  doctrines  and  practices 
of  the  body  with  which  they  are  to  render  their  Christian 
service.  Most  of  them  are  strictly  denominational  under 
church  or  denominational  control.  They  seek  to  train  their 
members  in  the  knowledge  of  the  Bible,  Christian  history, 
missions,  social  service  and  practical  efficiency.  The  most 
notable  of  these  organizations  are  the  following :     "  Young 


PROTESTANTISM    IN    THE   LAST    PERIOD  25 1 

People's  Society  of  Christian  Endeavor,"  founded  in  1881 
by  Francis  E.  Clark,  a  young  Congregational  pastor  at 
Portland,  Me. ;  it  is  interdenominational  and  a  model  for  all 
similar  societies:  '' Epworth  League,"  formed  at  Cleve- 
land, O.,  in  1885,  by  the  union  of  a  number  of  preexisting 
Methodist  societies  and  is  exclusively  Methodist :  "  Baptist 
Young  People's  Union  of  America,"  organized  at  Chicago  in 
1891 ;  it  now  has  a  special  southern  section  and  is  exclusively 
Baptist :  "  Luther  League  of  America,"  organized  at  Pitts- 
burg in  1895,  is  exclusively  Lutheran;  and  several  others 
of  less  importance  in  other  denominations. 

3.  The  Federal  Council  of  the  Churches  of  Christ  in 
America,  organized  in  1908  at  Philadelphia,  is  the  outcome 
of  several  earlier  efforts  at  the  creation  of  some  body  which 
would  serve  as  an  agency  for  common  council  and  other 
common  interests  of  evangelical  Christians  in  America.  As 
organized  it  is  the  cooperation  of  the  various  denominations 
for  service  rather  than  an  attempt  at  union  or  definitions 
on  theology,  polity  or  worship.  It  has  no  authority  over 
its  constituent  bodies,  its  function  being  limited  to  the  ex- 
pression of  advice  and  council  as  to  courses  of  action,  pro- 
moting ''  the  spirit  of  fellowship,  service  and  cooperation." 
The  Council  meets  every  four  years,  being  represented 
between  meetings  by  an  Executive  Committee  with  head- 
quarters in  New  York.  Thirty  of  the  denominations  and 
churches  of  the  country  are  now  represented.  Its  work  is 
accompHshed  through  Commissions  which  consider  such 
subjects  as  Foreign  Missions,  Home  Missions,  Christian 
Education,  Social  Service,  etc.  It  also  publishes  annually 
a  Year  Book  setting  forth  the  most  important  facts  concern- 
ing all  the  Christian  bodies  of  the  United  States.  The  or- 
ganization is  hardly  old  enough  to  have  demonstrated  its 
usefulness. 


252  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

§150 
THE   world's   religious   FORCES  TO-DAY 

It  is  probable  that  the  world  was  never  more  profoundly 
interested  in  religion  than  at  present,  nor  ever  recognized 
more  clearly  the  value  of  religion  for  the  life  of  man  in 
this  world  not  to  speak  of  the  next.  It  is  of  interest,  there- 
fore, to  set  out  according  to  the  best  available  statistics  and 
estimates  the  religious  complexion  of  the  world  in  191 5. 
The  figures  are  for  population  not  communicants  since  for 
many  of  the  religions  there  is  nothing  corresponding  in  the 
least  to  Christian  church  membership.  As  given  by  Whit- 
taker's  Almanac,  London,  the  race  is  divided  as  follows: 

Christians  564,510,000 

Confucianists  and  Taoists 300,830,000 

Mohammedans    221,825,000 

Hindus    210,540,000 

Animists    (Pagans)    158,270,000 

Buddhists  138,031,000 

Shintoists   25,000,000 

Jews    13,052,846 

Unclassified    15,280,000 

According  to  these  figures  the  so-called  Christian  popula- 
tion constitutes  nearly  one-third  of  the  human  race,  more 
than  any  other  two  religions.  Only  Christians  are  vigor- 
ously missionary.  The  pure  pagans  have  now  dwindled 
to  a  comparatively  small  part  of  the  race  consisting  of  the 
native  populations  of  Africa,  Australia,  South  America  and 
some  of  the  islands  of  the  Pacific. 

The  three  great  groups  of  Christians  are  given  as  fol- 
lows:  Roman  Catholics,  272,860,000;  Eastern  Orthodox, 
120,000,000;  Protestants,  171,650,000. 


QUESTIONS  AND  SUGGESTIONS  FOR 
FURTHER  STUDY 

INTRODUCTION 


Questions:  What  is  the  history  of  Christianity?  What 
is  meant  by  its  external  history?  Its  internal  history?  To 
what  Old  Testament  figures  may  it  be  compared?  What 
power  has  Christianity  to-day  ? 

Topics  for  further  Study:  Age  of  the  human  race  at 
the  birth  of  Christianity.  Relation  of  Christian  history  to 
other  forms  of  history.  Are  there  any  breaks  in  Christian 
history?  Forces  that  have  made  Christianity  victorious. 
Forces  that  have  caused  the  variations  in  its  history. 

§2 

Questions:  What  civilizations  had  risen  and  decayed  be- 
fore the  birth  of  Christianity?  What  were  the  two  great 
civilized  peoples  of  the  Mediterranean?  What  was  the 
dominant  political  power?  What  was  the  condition  of  the 
peoples  living  around  the  empire?  Tell  of  the  condition 
and  character  of  the  Romans.  The  Greeks.  The  Je\l^. 
What  was  the  Jewish  expectation  about  the  Messiah  ? 

Topics:  What  is  meant  by  civilization?  The  effect  of 
civilization  on  religion.  The  effect  of  Roman  domination  on 
subject  peoples.  Differences  between  Roman  and  Greek 
civilizations  and  religions.  Character  of  the  Jews  who 
lived  among  the  heathen. 

§3 

Questions:  What  of  poverty  and  wealth?  Character 
and  importance  of  slaves?  Greek,  Latin  and  Jewish  litera- 
ture and  writers?  Culture  of  the  masses?  Books  and 
schools?     Character  of  the  Jewish  education? 

Topics:    Number  and  character  of  slaves  in  Roman  em- 

253 


254  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

pire.  Effect  of  slavery  on  the  moral  and  economic  condi- 
tions. Causes  of  the  decline  of  literary  production.  The 
exhaustion  of  the  Greek  genius. 

§4 

Questions:  What  were  the  moral  conditions  within  the 
Roman  empire?  Causes  of  these  conditions?  Character 
and  effects  of  Roman  amusements?  What  was  the  current 
view  as  to  the  number  and  character  of  the  gods?  Of  im- 
morality? Were  the  various  peoples  generally  religious? 
How  did  they  worship?  Religious  instruction  and  sacred 
books  ? 

Topics:  Origin  of  religion.  Significance  of  the  univers- 
ality of  religion.  Relation  between  morals  and  religion. 
Effects  of  idolatry  on  morals.  Comparative  effects  of 
polytheism  and  monotheism  on  morals  and  life. 

§5 

Questions:  What  people  produced  the  leading  philo- 
sophy of  the  ancient  world?  What  was  its  relation  to  the 
religion  of  the  masses?  Of  the  cultured?  Who  was  the 
most  spiritual  of  the  philosophers?  What  did  philosophy 
strive  to  do?     What  was  its  relation  to  Christianity? 

Topics:  Relation  of  Philosophy  to  Religion.  Relation 
of  Philosophy  to  practical  life.  Why  was  the  Greek  the 
philosopher  of  the  ancient  world  ?  Why  did  philosophy  de- 
cay? 

PLANTING  CHRISTIANITY 

§6 

Questions:  What  great  change  took  place  in  the  Roman 
government?  How  did  this  affect  the  people?  Character 
of  the  emperors  in  the  first  century?  Fortunes  of  the  Jews 
in  this  century?  Did  conditions  help  or  hinder  the  spread 
of  Christianity? 

Topics:  Relation  of  government  to  the  religion  and 
morals  of  the  people.  Forces  that  operated  to  transform 
the  Roman  republic  into  a  monarchy.  Jewish  political 
helplessness  in  all  ages.  Relation  of  the  city  of  Jerusalem 
to  Jewish  national  life. 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY     255 

§7 

Questions:  Sketch  the  Hfe  of  Jesus  to  the  beginning 
of  his  public  ministry.  Give  a  sketch  of  John's  Hfe.  Give 
the  contents  of  John's  teachings  and  show  the  relation  of 
these  to  common  Jewish  beliefs.  How  did  Jesus  ally  himself 
with  John  and  his  teachings?  Give  a  summary  of  Jesus' 
teachings  and  works.  Causes  of  opposition  to  him?  Evi- 
'dences  of  his  resurrection?  The  extent  of  his  own  ministry 
and  the  reasons  for  its  limitations?  His  final  command  to 
his  disciples? 

Topics:  Relation  of  Jesus  to  the  working  people.  Re- 
lation of  Jesus  to  Jewish  social  and  religious  life  and  be- 
liefs. How  far  did  Jesus  fulfill  Jewish  expectations  con- 
cerning the  Messiah?  How  far  were  Jewish  expectations 
a  perversion  of  Old  Testament  teachings?  How  far  did 
John's  views  agree  and  how  far  disagree  with  current  Jew- 
ish expectations  ? 

§8 

Questions:  What  is  Christianity  as  a  historic  force? 
How  much  is  new  and  how  much  is  inherited  from  Judaism  ? 
What  are  the  distinctive  elements  of  the  Christian  type  of 
life  ?  What  is  the  distinctive  Christian  faith  ?  What  is  the 
distinctive  Christian  hope  ?  How  far  are  these  peculiarities 
found  among  others  than  Christians  ? 

Topics:  Consider  how  much  of  the  content  of  Christian- 
ity is  found  in  the  hearts  of  mankind  and  how  much  is  a 
direct  revelation  through  Jesus  and  others.  Do  mission- 
aries have  to  create  religion  in  a  heathen  land  ?  H  not,  what 
is  the  relation  of  Christianity  to  existing  religions  ? 

§9 

Questions:  How  far  did  Jesus  spread  the  gospel  by  his 
own  preaching?  What  did  Pentecost  do  for  the  spread  of 
the  gospel?  When  and  why  did  persecution  break  out? 
What  effect  did  it  have  on  the  spread  of  the  gospel?  Show 
the  steps  by  which  the  Christian  missionaries  began  to  preach 
among  the  Gentiles.  Why  did  the  Christians  hesitate  to 
preach  to  the  heathen? 

Topics:  Religious  prejudice.  The  benefits  that  had 
come  to  the  world  through  Jewish  exclusiveness.     Points  of 


256  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

superiority  in  the  Jewish  religion  and  life  over  those  of  the 
Gentiles.  Sources  of  this  superiority.  Significance  of  Pen- 
tecost for  the  history  of  Christianity. 

§10 

Questions:  Give  an  account  of  the  early  life  of  Paul. 
Of  his  conversion.  Of  his  entrance  upon  Christian  work. 
Trace  on  the  map  the  journeys  of  Paul  in  the  pursuit  of  his 
missionary  labors.  What  was  the  substance  of  his  preach- 
ing to  Jews?  To  Gentiles?  What  do  we  know  about  the 
later  work  of  the  Twelve?  How  far  had  Christianity 
spread  by  end  of  the  first  century? 

Topics:  How  to  explain  a  great  man  like  Paul.  Ele- 
ments of  greatness  in  Paul.  Paul's  adaptability  to  various 
conditions,  races  and  occasions.  Paul's  chief  contributions 
to  the  history  of  Christianity. 

§11 

Questions:  How  early  did  the  Christians  begin  to  or- 
ganize? What  was  the  basis  of  their  organization?  In 
what  sense  were  the  churches  democracies  ?  What  were  the 
qualifications  for  membership?  Size  of  the  churches? 
What  were  the  officers  of  the  churches?  Their  duties? 
What  were  apostles,  prophets  and  evangelists?  Describe 
Christian  worship.  Meaning  of  baptism  and  the  Lord's 
supper? 

Topics:  Relation  of  organization  to  the  success  of  any 
movement  like  Christianity.  Points  of  strength  and  of 
weakness  in  a  democracy.  Difficulties  in  obtaining  satis- 
factory officials  in  the  early  churches.  Financial  support 
of  the  early  churches.  Purpose  of  worship.  Relative  value 
of  free  and  of  liturgical  worship.  Relation  of  the  ordi- 
nances to  the  spiritual  content  of  Christianity. 

§12 
Questions:  What  was  the  first  great  danger  that  Chris- 
tianity encountered  ?  How  did  the  Jewish  Christians  believe 
that  the  Gentiles  could  be  saved?  How  did  the  work  of 
Paul  and  Barnabas  raise  the  question  in  acute  form  ?  What 
was  the  practice  of  these  missionaries?  Why  did  they 
carry  the  question  up  to  Jerusalem  ?     What  was  the  decision 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS    FOR    FURTHER   STUDY     257 

of  this  first  Christian  council?  How  important  was  the 
question  involved?  Was  the  decision  of  the  council  ac- 
cepted and  acted  upon?  What  other  dangerous  forms  of 
error  existed  in  these  early  days  of  Christianity?  What  was 
the  general  content  of  faith  which  most  Christians  accepted? 
Topics:  Relation  between  the  inner  spiritual  contents  of 
Christianity  and  the  outward  expressions  of  that  faith.  The 
effect  of  ceremonialism  on  spirituality.  The  motives  of  the 
Judaizers.  Paul's  emancipation  from  current  Jewish  no- 
tions.    Various  sources  of  error  in  Christian  doctrine. 

§13 

Questions:  How  did  the  moral  life  of  the  early  churches 
compare  with  the  moral  life  of  the  churches  of  to-day? 
By  what  sins  were  the  early  churches  afflicted?  How  did 
the  churches  deal  with  these  sins?  How  well  did  the  Chris- 
tians bear  up  under  persecution?  How  did  the  Christians 
relate  themselves  to  heathen  society?  Was  there  any  of  the 
asceticism  or  monasticism  which  characterized  so  much  of 
later  Christianity? 

From  what  stratum  of  society  did  the  early  Christians 
chiefly  come?  From  what  races?  What  languages  were 
used  in  missionary  work  ? 

Topics:  The  moral  tonic  of  Christianity.  The  degree 
in  which  Christianity  has  been  successful  in  fighting  and 
eradicating  the  evils  of  society.  Points  in  which  there  have 
been  marked  improvements.  Less  improvement.  Causes 
of  asceticism. 

Reasons  why  one  class  of  society  accepts  Christianity 
more  readily  than  another.  Same  as  to  race.  Is  it  easier 
for  a  poor  man  to  be  a  Christian  than  for  a  rich  man?  A 
Gentile  than  a  Jew  ?    An  ignorant  than  a  learned  man  ? 

SECOND  PERIOD  100-323 

§14 
Questions:  Were  conditions  favorable  for  Christian 
progress  in  this  period?  What  were  Rome's  chief  external 
enemies?  Where  did  she  extend  her  territory?  From 
what  internal  disorders  did  she  suffer  in  the  third  century? 
What  of  her  material  prosperity?     When  was  citizenship 


258  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

extended  to  all  free  men  ?  What  signs  of  decay  can  we  ob- 
serve? What  was  the  relation  of  Christianity  to  the  empire 
during  this  period? 

Topics:  Causes  of  national  decay.  Causes  of  the  decay 
of  Rome.  Relation  of  war  and  conquest  to  national  decay. 
Relation  of  poverty  and  wealth  to  national  strength  and  na- 
tional decay.  Did  the  imperial  government  help  or  hinder 
Christianity  in  this  period  ? 

§15 

Questions:  How  widely  was  education  diffused?  What 
sort  of  education  was  it?  Was  it  helpful  or  hurtful  to  life 
of  the  people?  What  of  the  old  idolatrous  Roman  religion? 
What  was  emperor  worship?  Its  origin  and  significance? 
What  new  religions  were  coming  in  from  the  East?  How 
did  they  compare  with  the  old  Roman  religion?  What  was 
the  general  attitude  toward  new  religions  ?  Was  this  feel- 
ing hurtful  or  helpful  to  the  spread  of  Christianity? 

Topics:  Causes  of  skepticism.  Cures  of  skepticism. 
Relation  of  education  to  moral  and  religious  welfare.  Why 
one  religion  is  preferred  above  another.  Why  Christian- 
ity is  always  ultimately  accepted  when  fairly  presented. 

§16       _ 

Questions:  What  success*  did  Christian  missions  have 
in  this  period?  What  advantages  enjoyed  by  modern  mis- 
sions, were  wanting  in  this  period  ?  What  do  we  know  about 
the  details  of  missionary  work?  What  nationalities  were 
active  in  this  period?  What  new  versions  of  the  Scriptures 
were  made?  What  notable  men  were  converted?  Tell  of 
the  conversion  of  Constantine.  Wliat  great  benefit  did  he 
confer  on  the  Christians? 

Topics:  Explain  the  rapid  progress  of  Christianity  in 
this  period.  Elements  in  it  which  appealed  to  that  world. 
Effects  of  the  Latin  translation  of  the  Bil)le.  Effects  of 
governmental  favor  on  the  history  of  Christianity  and  its 
character.     Visions  and  their  reality. 

§17 

Questions:  State  the  main  causes  of  the  persecution 
of  the   Christians.     Number   of   Christians   who  perished? 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR    FURTHER   STUDY      259 

What  is  meant  by  sporadic  persecution?  How  many  gen- 
eral persecutions?  When?  Kinds  of  punishments?  Lit- 
erary attacks  on  Christianity?  Arguments  against  Chris- 
tianity? Work  of  Celsus.  How  did  the  Christians  defend 
themselves?  When  and  how  did  they  finally  obtain  peace? 
Topics:  The  moral  element  in  the  opposition  to  Chris- 
tianity. Effects  of  persecution  upon  Christianity,  good  and 
bad.  Elements  in  Christianity  that  made  it  able  to  resist 
all  the  might  of  the  Roman  empire.  Behavior  of  the 
Christians  under  persecution.  The  continuity  of  opposition 
to  Christianity  through  the  ages.     Why  ? 

§18 

Questions:  What  is  meant  by  saying  that  Christianity 
had  been  changing  as  it  spread?  How  had  the  conception 
of  the  church  changed  as  to  membership,  government,  func- 
tion, unity,  infallibility? 

Topics:  Causes  of  the  changes  in  the  inner  life  of  Chris- 
tianity. Preexisting  religious  and  social  beliefs,  practices 
and  institutions  as  factors  in  the  changes.  Unholy  ambi- 
tions of  men  as  factors. 

§19 

Questions:  What  officials  of  early  Christianity  disappear 
in  this  period?  Show  how  the  two  officers  of  the  local 
church  change  into  three.  Trace  the  steps  by  which  the 
bishop  of  one  church  grows  into  the  bishop  of  a  diocese. 
How  archbishops  or  metropolitans  develop.  How  Patri- 
archs. Show  how  the  laity  lost  influence  and  the  bishops 
grew  in  importance.  What  functions  did  the  bishops  come 
to  perform?     What  lower  officers  were  developed? 

Topics:  Influence  of  civil  government  on  church  govern- 
ment. Forces  that  tended  to  centralize  the  government  of 
the  church  under  the  bishop  and  eliminate  the  layman.  Es- 
sentials of  democratic  government. 

§20 
Questions:     What  is  meant  by  sacraments?     When  was 
something  else  accepted  in  place  of  immersion  for  baptism? 
What   preparation   was   made    for   baptism?     What   cere- 
monies immediately  preceded  and  followed  baptism  ?     What 


26o  THE    COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

significance  was  now  attached  to  baptism?  Who  admin- 
istered baptism?  When  and  why  did  infant  baptism  orig- 
inate? Who  administered  the  Lord's  supper?  Who  par- 
took of  the  supper  ?  What  later  CathoHc  ideas  are  already 
growing  up  in  connection  with  the  supper? 

Topics:  Forces  that  gradually  transformed  the  ordi- 
nances of  baptism  and  the  supper.  What  it  is  in  human 
nature  that  leads  people  to  rely  on  external  ceremonies  for 
salvation.  The  relation  between  ceremonies  and  the  spirit- 
ual life.  Reasons  that  moved  Jesus  to  approve  these  cere- 
monies when  he  must  have  known  how  they  would  be  abused. 

§21 

Questions:  What  is  meant  by  liturgical  worship? 
Causes  that  led  to  its  development?  Time  of  worship? 
Character  of  worship?  What  annual  festivals  were  de- 
veloped? With  what  meaning?  Places  of  worship?  Ar- 
rangement of  the  house?  Contents  of  the  worship? 
Preaching  and  instruction?     Origin  of  the  term  "  mass  "? 

Topics:  Advantages  and  disadvantages  in  annual  reli- 
gious festivals.  Relation  between  religious  instruction  and 
religious  efficiency.  Preaching  as  a  factor  in  Christian  civ- 
ilization. Relation  between  church  buildings  and  chufch 
efficiency.  •'^* 

§22 

Questions:  What  was  the  general  tendency  of  Christian 
life  in  this  period?  How  did  the  church  discipline  its  mem- 
bers ?  What  forms  of  evil  did  it  attack  in  this  period  ?  And 
with  what  success?  When  and  why  did  monasticism  arise? 
Who  was  the  first  prominent  representative  of  the  monastic 
life?  In  what  country?  Who  produced  the  first  rule  and 
when?  How  did  Christians  begin  to  regard  the  married  and 
unmarried  states  ?  What  was  the  general  attitude  of  Chris- 
tians toward  public  life  in  the  army  ?  The  state?  How  did 
Christians  dispose  of  their  dead?  What  were  the  cata- 
combs?    What  did  Christians  do  for  schools  and  education? 

Topics:  Value  of  church  discipline  as  a  moral  agency. 
Value  of  asceticism  as  a  protest  against  worldliness.  The 
monastic  ideal  of  life.  Moral  effects  of  the  emphasis  on  the 
celibate  life.     Relation  of  the  Christian  man  to  public  life. 


QUESTIONS   AND  SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY     261 
§23 

Questions:  Show  how  our  New  Testament  books  were 
produced,  selected  from  among  others  and  gathered  into  a 
canon.  What  does  "  canon  "  mean  ?  How  did  the  so-called 
Apostles'  Creed  originate?  Give  its  contents.  What  did 
most  Qiristians  believe  about  Christ. 

Topics:  Christianity  as  a  literary  force.  Superiority  of 
the  New  Testament  writings  over  other  Christian  writings 
of  the  same  period.  Tests  for  determining  the  canonical 
character  of  a  writing.  Value  of  creeds.  Dangers  of 
creeds.  The  intellectual  necessity  for  systematized  Chris- 
tian doctrine.  The  relative  strength  of  Unitarianism  and 
Trinitarianism  in  Christian  history, 

§24 

Questions:  What  were  some  of  the  causes  of  schisms? 
Why  were  the  great  body  of  Christians  called  Catholics? 
Why  were  they  drifting  away  from  the  apostolic  moorings? 
Give  the  origin,  teachings  and  history  of  the  Montanists. 
The  Novatians.  The  Donatists.  What  did  these  schisms 
have  in  common?  Give  an  account  of  Gnosticism.  Of 
Manichseism.  What  did  they  have  in  common  ?  How  seri- 
ous were  these  various  schisms  and  heresies?  What  was 
the  tendency  in  heathen  literature  ?  In  Christian  literature  ? 
What  forms  did  Christian  literature  take? 

Topics:  Causes  of  Christian  divisions.  The  psychology 
of  sectarianism.  The  psychology  of  Catholicism.  Advant- 
ages and  disadvantages  of  Christian  unity  and  uniformity. 
Relation  of  Christian  to  non-Christian  thought.  Relation 
of  knowledge  and  faith.  Causes  of  the  decline  of  heathen 
and  rise  of  Christian  literature.  Relation  of  "  polite  "  to 
distinctively  religious  literature. 

THIRD  PERIOD  323  TO  600 

§25 
Questions:    What    great    European    upheaval    in    this 
period  ?     What  was  the  character  and  condition  of  the  Ger- 
mans at  this  time?     Why  were  they  able  to  break  into  the 
empire  at  this  time?     How  was  the  Roman  government 


262  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

divided  after  the  death  of  Constantine?  Where  was  the 
new  capital  ?  Effect  of  the  German  invasion  on  the  empire  ? 
What  sort  of  governments  did  the  Germans  set  up?  How 
did  the  subject  peoples  conquer  their  conquerors?  What 
were  the  immediate  and  what  the  more  remote  effects  of  the 
German  invasion? 

Topics:  Motives  actuating  the  Germans  in  their  attack 
on  the  Roman  empire.  Causes  of  the  increasing  weakness 
of  the  empire.  Comparative  advantages  and  disadvantages 
of  consolidated  imperial  and  smaller  national  governments. 
Did  the  German  invasion  destroy  or  save  Europe? 

§26 

Questions:  Success  of  missions  in  this  period?  What 
was  the  attitude  of  the  Roman  government  toward  Chris- 
tianity after  Constantine?  Efforts  of  Julian?  When  was 
Christianity  made  the  established  religion  of  the  empire? 
What  was  then  done  with  the  old  heathenism?  When  did 
the  heathen  culture  come  to  an  end?  How  thorough  was 
the  work  of  Christianizing  in  this  period?  Was  govern- 
mental favor  an  advantage  ?  What  was  the  religious  condi- 
tion of  the  Germans  when  they  poured  into  the  empire?  To 
what  two  forms  of  Christianity  were  they  converted? 
Which  form  finally  triumphed  among  them  ? 

Topics:  Tell  of  the  conversion  of  Ireland.  Of  Scotland. 
Show  how  far  Christianity  spread  eastward  in  this  period. 
Tell  of  the  work  of  Ulfilas  among  the  Visigoths.  Political 
and  social  ferment  as  a  Christian  opportunity.  The  ef- 
fect of  powerful  patronage  on  the  progress  and  purity  of 
Christianity.  EfYect  of  the  union  between  church  and 
state  on  Christianity.  On  the  State.  Character  of  "  mass 
conversions."  Effects  of  the  German  invasion  and  the  fall 
of  the  Roman  empire  on  the  history  of  Christianity.  Char- 
acter of  the  Christianity  of  Ireland  and  Scotland.  Char- 
acter of  the  Christianity  that  went  eastward  into  Armenia, 
Persia,  etc.  Character  of  early  German  Christianity.  Ef- 
fects of  national  character  on  Christian  types. 

§27 

Questions:  What  was  the  general  tendency  in  the  de- 
velopment of  church  government  in  this  period?     Growing 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY      263 

power  of  the  clergy?  Church  courts  and  law,  their  Origin 
and  jurisdiction?  Church  property?  Relation  of  the  State 
to  the  appointment  of  church  officials?  Trace  the  rise  of 
the  bishop  of  Rome  into  a  world  power.  Origin  and  vari- 
ous grades  of  councils?  Importance  of  Ecumenical  coun- 
cils?    Dates  and  work  of  two  very  important  councils. 

Topics:  Increase  of  ecclesiastical  organization  as  re- 
lated to  increase  of  Christian  service.  Forces  operative  for 
the  elimination  of  the  laity  and  the  elevation  of  the  clergy. 
Social  conditions  operating  for  the  creation  of  church  courts 
and  church  law.  Historical,  political  and  social  conditions 
that  worked  for  the  elevation  of  the  bishop  of  Rome.  Reli- 
gious and  cultural  effects  of  the  church's  claim  of  infalli- 
bility. 

§28 

Questions:  Interest  of  the  world  in  theology  in  this 
period?  Character  of  the  theological  controversy  of  the 
period?  What  part  did  the  government  play  in  these  con- 
troversies? What  was  the  question  involved  in  the  Arian 
controversy?  How  serious  was  the  controversy?  What 
was  the  decision  of  the  Council  of  Nicea?  How  far  has 
that  decision  held  the  assent  of  the  Christian  world  to  the 
present? 

Topics:  Relation  of  the  Greek  mind  to  theological  spec- 
ulation and  controversy.  Moral  effects  of  making  ortho- 
doxy the  supreme  test  of  Christianity.  Theology  as  a  divis- 
ive force  in  the  Christian  body.  Causes  of  the  comparative 
ineffectiveness  of  Unitarianism  in  Christian  history. 

§29 

Questions:  General  tendencies  in  the  development  of 
the  doctrines  of  baptism  and  the  supper?  What  as  to  the 
form  or  mode  of  baptism?  Infant  baptism?  Effects  of 
baptism?  Administrator  of  baptism?  Postponement  of 
Baptism?  Views  as  to  Christ's  presence  in  the  supper? 
The  mass  as  a  sacrifice? 

Topics:  Absorption  of  heathen  ideas  in  connection  with 
baptism  and  the  supper.  Effects  of  these  changes  upon  the 
religious  and  moral  life.  Baptism  and  the  supper  as  means 
for  preserving  the  purity  of  Christian  doctrine  and  life. 


264  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

§30 

Questions:  The  preaching  of  this  period  compared  with 
that  of  earlier  periods?  Extent  of  Christian  instruction 
preceding  baptism?  Christian  culture  and  schools? 
Church  building  in  this  period?  Help  of  princes  and  the 
wealthy  in  this  work?  Character  of  worship  in  the  great 
churches  by  the  end  of  this  period?  What  were  the  three 
cycles  of  the  Christian  year?  What  was  the  purpose  of 
these  festivals? 

Topics:  The  character  of  preaching  as  related  to  the  gen- 
eral culture  of  the  age.  The  effect  of  culture  on  the  char- 
acter of  Christian  worship.  Church  buildings  as  related  to 
wealth  and  culture.  Relative  value  of  simplicity  and  ornate- 
ness  in  worship.  Origin  and  effects  of  a  special  clerical 
dress.  Origin  and  effects  of  lights,  censers  and  pictures  in 
worship. 

§31 

Questions:  Considerations  moving  Christians  to  retire 
into  monastic  life?  Magnitude  of  the  movement?  Neces- 
sity for  organization  ?  Where,  when  and  by  whom  was  the 
first  order  organized?  What  services  did  the  monks  and 
nuns  render?  What  were  some  of  the  effects  good  and 
bad  of  monasticism?  What  effect  was  Christianity  having 
upon  public  life?  What  evils  of  the  ancient  world  were 
being  abolished? 

Topics:  The  appeal  of  the  monastic  life  to  the  men  and 
the  women  of  the  Middle  Ages.  The  effects  of  the  monastic 
movement  upon  the  religious,  moral  and  cultural  life  of  the 
Middle  Ages.  Effects  of  different  types  of  Christianity  on 
the  private  and  the  public  life  of  the  people. 


FOURTH  PERIOD  600-1050 

§32 

Questions:  What  was  the  general  tendency  in  the  earlier 
part  of  this  period?  When  did  the  light  begin  to  break? 
Why  is  the  period  called  the  "  Dark  Ages  "  ? 

Give  the  main  facts  of  Mohammed's  life.  Sources  of 
his    doctrines?    Year     from     which    the     Mohammedans 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS    FOR    FURTHER    STUDY     265 

date  their  era  ?  What  world  conditions  favored  the  spread 
of  the  new  religion?  What  motives  actuated  the  Mo- 
hammedans in  their  conquests?  Trace  the  course  of  their 
expansion  in  the  West  and  the  East.  The  effects  of 
their  conquests  upon  Christianity?  What  are  the  prin- 
cipal beliefs  of  the  Mohammedans?  How  do  they  wor- 
ship? What  is  the  origin  and  character  of  their  bible? 
Some  of  their  social  ideas  and  practices?  General  effects 
of  their  fatalistic  views?  Effects  on  the  heathen  whom 
they  conquered? 

Topics:  Relation  of  the  fall  of  the  Roman  empire  to  the 
"  Dark  Ages."  Relation  of  the  German  invasion  to  the 
same. 

Origin  of  religion.  Origins  of  religions.  Character  and 
history  of  Mohammed.  Religion  as  an  element  in  racial 
unity  and  efficiency.  Elements  of  power  in  Mohammedan- 
ism. Religion  as  a  hindrance  to  progress.  Force  as  a 
means  of  spreading  a  religion. 

§33 

Questions:  Effect  of  Mohammedanism  on  the  mission- 
ary activities  of  the  Christians  who  were  subjected  to  Mo- 
hammedan rule?  Name  the  leading  groups  of  Slavs. 
Where  did  they  settle  ?  When  and  by  whom  were  they  first 
evangelized?  What  type  of  Christianity  did  they  receive? 
How  did  they  receive  Christianity?  Are  they  religious  or 
indifferent? 

Topics:  The  paralyzing  effects  of  Mohammedanism  on 
all  moral  and  philanthropic  activities.  The  character  and 
history  of  the  Slavs.  The  type  of  Christianity  which  they 
received.  Relation  between  the  Greek  Catholic  religion  and 
the  history  of  the  Slavs. 

§34 

Questions:  What  became  of  the  Christianity  of  North 
Africa?  Effect  of  the  Mohammedans  on  Christianity  in 
Italy  and  Spain  ?  What  had  been  the  effect  of  the  German 
invasion  on  the  Christianity  of  Britain?  When  and  how 
did  the  Christianizing  of  these  Germans  in  Britain  begin? 
Give  an  account  of  the  work  of  the  missionaries  from  Rome. 


266  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

Of  the  Scotch.  When  and  where  did  the  Anglo-Saxons 
decide  to  accept  the  Roman  type?  What  changes  did  those 
of  the  Scotch  type  have  to  make?  How  soon  did  the  re- 
mainder of  the  British  Isles  accept  the  Roman  type?  When 
were  they  thoroughly  Romanized?  Give  an  account  of 
Scotch  missions  on  the  continent.  What  of  the  missionary 
zeal  and  energy  of  the  Anglo-Saxons?  Give  an  account 
of  the  Christianizing  of  the  Dutch  (Frisians).  Give  an 
account  of  the  work  of  Boniface  the  "  Apostle  of  Germany." 
The  efforts  of  Charlemagne  in  the  interest  of  Christian  mis- 
sions? Christianizing  the  Scandinavian  countries?  Work 
of  the  English  in  that  direction  ? 

Topics:  Missionary  energy  as  related  to  national  char- 
acter. Missionary  energy  of  the  Roman  and  the  Greek 
Catholic  churches  compared.  The  failure  of  the  Scotch 
type  of  Christianity  in  competition  with  the  Roman.  Ad- 
vantages and  disadvantages  accruing  to  the  British  Isles 
by  the  adoption  of  the  Roman  type.  The  Catholic  church  as 
the  bearer  of  culture  as  well  as  religion  to  the  Germanic 
peoples. 

§35 

Questions:  What  differences  led  to  estrangement  be- 
tween the  East  and  the  West?  What  religious  differences 
developed  in  the  course  of  time?  What  ecclesiastical  rival- 
ries accentuated  these  differences?  When  did  strained  re- 
lations begin  to  develop?  When  did  the  final  break  come 
and  how  ?     What  efforts  at  reconciliation  have  been  made  ? 

Topics:  Effects  of  the  Greek  and  Latin  languages  on 
the  history  of  Christianity.  Striking  mental  and  spiritual 
differences  between  the  Greeks  and  the  Latins.  How  far 
the  Slavs  have  modified  the  Greek  Catholic  church.  Racial 
differences  as  a  factor  in  Christian  history.  Forces  that 
work  to  perpetuate  religious  schisms  when  they  once  occur. 
Forces  that  tend  to  bring  about  reunion. 

§36 

Questions:  Attitude  of  early  Christianity  toward  worship 
of  images  ?  When  and  how  did  they  get  into  Christian  wor- 
ship? Who  opposed  them?  Who  supported  them?  How 
do  you  explain  this?     Effort  of  Leo  III  to  eliminate  them? 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY      26/ 

When  and  how  were  they  restored?  What  distinction  was 
made  by  the  Council  in  787  ?  On  what  grounds  do  the  Cath- 
olics deny  that  they  are  idolators  ?  What  difference  between 
the  usage  of  the  Greek  and  the  Roman  Catholic  churches? 
The  second  attempt  to  remove  them  and  its  failure?  What 
was  the  attitude  of  the  pope  and  the  Western  church? 
What  great  change  in  the  political  allegiance  of  the  pope 
was  brought  about  by  the  controversy?  What  was  the  at- 
titude of  Charlemagne  ?  What  were  the  total  results  of  the 
controversy  ? 

Topics:  The  psychology  of  image  worship.  Its  power 
in  the  history  of  Christianity.  Is  there  any  legitimate  use 
of  pictures  or  statues  in  Christian  worship?  When  and 
wherein  are  they  objectionable?  Difficulties  in  attaining  a 
purely  spiritual   worship   entirely  devoid  of   symbolism. 

§37 

Questions:  How  did  the  pope  come  to  be  a  land  owner? 
How  was  ownership  gradually  transformed  into  political 
control?  How  did  the  Prankish  kings  assist  in  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  papal  states?  How  long  did  these  papal 
states  stand?     What  brought  them  to  an  end? 

Topics:  Historic  consequences  of  the  alliance  of  the 
popes  and  the  Prankish  kings.  Effects  of  temporal  rule 
upon  the  fortunes  of  the  pope.  Effects  on  the  history  of 
Italy.  On  the  German  empire.  Effects  on  the  spiritual 
influence  of  the  pope. 

§38 

Questions:  End  of  the  western  part  of  the  empire? 
Eastern  part  ?  Which  German  tribe  reunited  the  fragments 
in  the  West?  Work  of  Charlemagne  as  King?  Made 
emperor?  Two  empires?  Importance  of  Charlemagne's 
act  ?  Decay  of  imperial  power  ?  Restored  by  whom  ?  Em- 
perors and  popes?     Effect  of  imperial  dominance? 

Topics:  Persistence  of  the  imperial  idea.  Its  effects  on 
the  world.  Effectiveness  of  the  empire  as  a  form  of  gov- 
ernment.    Influence  of  the  German  empire  upon  the  papacy. 

§39 

Questions:    What  five  events  or  movements  contributed 


268  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

to  the  rise  of  the  Pope  in  this  period  ?  What  was  the  "  Dona- 
tion of  Constantine  "  ?  What  effect  did  it  have  on  the  for- 
tunes of  the  papacy?  What  was  the  papal  ambition  from 
this  time  onward?  How  did  missions  extend  the  Pope's 
power?  What  pecuHar  dignity  and  power  was  conferred 
on  the  bishops  in  Germany?  What  did  this  lead  the  State 
to  do? 

Topics:  Contents  of  the  Pseudo-Isidorian  decretals  and 
the  Donation  of  Constantine.  The  Pope's  use  of  these  docu- 
ments through  the  centuries. 

§40 

Questions:  Spread  of  monasticism  into  mission  fields? 
Relation  of  the  monks  and  nuns  to  the  mission  work?  Serv- 
ice to  schools?  To  education  and  literature?  Power  of 
monasticism  in  the  Catholic  church  from  this  time  on. 

General  tendencies  in  Christian  life?  Causes  of  decline 
in  morals?  Character  of  the  higher  clergy?  Lower  clergy? 
Effects  of  the  use  of  Latin  in  the  church  services  as  this 
language  died?  Translation  of  the  Scriptures  into  the  liv- 
ing languages  of  Europe?  Process  of  endowing  the 
churches?  What  was  the  tithe?  What  is  private  confes- 
sion? When  was  the  organ  introduced  into  the  services  in 
the  West?     How  did  the  indulgence  originate? 

Topics:  Service  of  monasticism  in  the  conservation  of 
culture.  Peculiarities  of  the  monastic  mind.  Service  of 
the  monks  in  building  a  Christian  civilization  for  the  Ger- 
manic peoples. 

Absorptions  from  Germanic  heathenism  found  in  the 
Catholic  church.  Effect  of  political  activities  on  the  char- 
acter and  efficiency  of  the  clergy.  The  retention  of  Latin 
in  worship  as  Christianity  spread  into  non-Latin  lands. 
Decline  in  the  use  of  the  Bible  and  the  relation  of  this  fact 
to  the  moral  and  religious  decline.  Motives  appealed  to 
by  the  church  to  secure  gifts.  The  psychology  of  confes- 
sion.    Of  private  confession. 

Questions:  How  far  did  all  Christianity  become  Catho- 
lic? What  non-Catholic  Christianity  continues  in  the  East? 
Give  an  account  of  the  history  and  doctrines  of  the  Pauli- 


QUESTIONS    AND    SUGGESTIONS    FOR    FURTHER    STUDY      269 

cians.     Of  the  Bogomiles.     How  did  the  Catholic  church 
treat  these  parties  ? 

Topics:     Sources   of   the   anti-Catholic  parties.     Impor- 
tance of  the  differences. 


FIFTH  PERIOD  1050  TO  1305 

§42 

Questions:  Where  did  the  Turks  originate?  What  sort 
of  people  were  they  ?  When  did  they  accept  Mohammedan- 
ism? Their  conquest  of  Persia?  Their  attack  on  the 
Christian  empire  and  the  Mohammedan  Arabs  ?  Extent  of 
their  conquests  in  this  period?  When  was  Jerusalem  cap- 
tured by  them? 

What  are  the  Crusades?  What  caused  them?  From 
what  part  of  Europe  did  the  crusaders  go?  What  did  the 
first  Crusade  accomplish?  What  form  of  Christianity  did 
it  set  up  in  the  East?  How  long  did  the  Crusades  last? 
What  effect  did  the  Crusades  have  on  the  Turkish  invasion 
of  Western  Asia?  What  effect  did  they  have  on  Constan- 
tinople? What  was  the  condition  of  the  eastern  empire  and 
the  Turkish  empire  at  the  close  of  the  period? 

Topics:  Interior  Asia  as  the  cradle  of  nations  and  the 
source  of  religions.  Character  and  ability  of  the  Turks. 
Mohammedan  Turks  compared  with  Mohammedan  Arabs. 
The  Turks  as  the  scourge  of  Western  Asia. 

Complex  of  motives  that  actuated  the  Crusaders.  Re- 
ligion as  a  cause  of  wars.  The  psychology  of  pilgrimages. 
Veneration  for  holy  places.  General  effects  of  the  Crusades 
on  the  fortunes  of  Christianity  and  Mohammedanism  in  the 
East. 

§43 

Questions:  General  tendencies  in  the  West?  Moorish 
culture  in  Spain?  Revival  along  the  northern  shores  of 
the  Mediterranean?  Inroads  of  the  Northmen  on  their 
southern  neighbors?  Immediate  and  ultimate  effects  of 
these  invasions?  Normans  in  France?  Union  of  England 
and  France  by  William  the  Conqueror?  Normans  in  the 
Mediterranean  and  Italy? 


270  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

Topics:  Motives  actuating  the  movements  of  the  North- 
men. Forces  that  are  making  for  improvement  in  the  West 
in  this  period. 

§44 

Questions:  Successful  mission  work  of  this  period? 
Type  of  Christianity  received  by  Northern  and  Western 
Europe  ?  A  rehgious  revival  in  the  West  ?  Church  schools 
and  their  work?  Origin  of  the  oldest  European  universi- 
ties ?  Literature  produced  in  the  West  ?  Distinctive  Catho- 
Hc  doctrines  worked  out? 

Topics:  Causes  of  the  great  intellectual  and  religious 
revival.  Relation  between  intellectual  vigor  and  religious 
earnestness  and  activity.  Character  of  scholasticism.  Its 
permanent  value.  Its  failure  and  the  causes.  Relation 
between  Catholic  doctrines  and  the  Mediaeval  mind. 
Catholic  doctrines  and  the  modern  mind. 

§45 

Question:  When  did  the  papacy  reach  the  zenith  of  its 
power?  Work  of  Hildebrand?  Changes  in  papal  elec- 
tions in  this  period  ?  What  other  factors  contributed  to  the 
rise  and  power  of  the  papacy? 

Topics:  The  papacy  as  a  political  power  in  the  Middle 
Ages.  Relation  of  clerical  celibacy  to  papal  control  of  the 
church.  Was  the  papacy  a  beneficent  power  in  the  Middle 
Ages? 

§46 

Questions:  How  did  the  church  and  the  state  come  into 
conflict?  Why  did  the  state  wish  to  appoint  ecclesiastical 
officials?  How  had  the  state  abused  this  power?  What 
did  the  princes  do?  Three  notable  victories  of  the  Pope 
over  princes?  What  was  the  papal  theory  as  to  the  rela- 
tion between  church  and  state  ?  What  was  the  effect  of  the 
long  struggle  on  the  two  powers?  W'hich  seemed  to  have 
the  better  of  the  fight  at  the  end  of  the  period? 

Topics:  Causes  of  conflict  between  church  and  state. 
Causes  peculiar  to  the  Catholic  church.  Relation  of  church 
property  to  the  conflict.  Should  the  state  limit  the  amount 
of  property  to  be  held  by  the  church?  Has  the  state  any 
religious  duties?     Has  the  church  any  poHtical  duties? 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY      2']\ 

§47 

Questions:  What  was  the  older  monastic  ideal?  What 
was  the  newer  ideal?  Why  were  they  called  friars?  Why 
mendicants?  Give  an  account  of  Francis  and  his  order. 
Of  Dominic  and  his  order.  What  position  did  they  attain 
in  the  Catholic  church?  What  was  their  influence  on  the 
church's  life?  How  were  they  organized?  How  did  they 
differ  from  each  other? 

Topics:  The  spirit  of  service  breaking  through  monas- 
tic limitations.  The  mendicant  orders  as  missionary  agen- 
cies in  subsequent  Catholic  history.  Revival  of  preaching 
in  these  orders.  The  neglect  of  preaching  in  the  Middle 
Ages.  Why  does  the  Catholic  church  in  general  lay  so  little 
emphasis  on  preaching? 

§48 

Questions:  What  were  the  two  great  periods  of  theo- 
logical formulation  to  this  point  in  Christian  history  ?  How 
did  they  differ  from  each  other?  Name  some  of  the  great 
theologians  and  writers  of  this  period.  What  Catholic  doc- 
trines were  discussed  to  a  finish  in  this  period? 

Topics:  Origin  of  the  new  intellectual  atmosphere  and 
ability  of  this  period.  The  nations  which  led  in  productive 
scholarship.  The  subjects  with  which  scholars  occupied 
themselves.  Nature  and  methods  of  their  work.  Influence 
of  Aristotle  on  the  intellectual  work  of  this  period. 

§49 

Questions:  What  is  the  Mass?  In  what  sense  is  it  re- 
garded as  a  sacrifice  ?  Why  is  the  wafer  worshiped  ?  Why 
was  the  cup  withdrawn  from  the  laity  ?  When  and  why  was 
infant  communion  discontinued?  What  are  the  bread  and 
the  wine  supposed  to  become  in  the  process  of  consecration  ? 
How  is  the  wafer  administered?  What  movements  brought 
about  a  revival  of  preaching?  What  new  annual  festivals 
were  created  in  this  period  ?  How  large  a  place  did  annual 
festivals  fill  in  the  life  of  the  church?  What  of  church 
architecture  in  this  period  ?  Name  some  of  the  great  cathe- 
drals and  tell  something  of  such  buildings  in  general. 

Topics:     Human  nature's  demand  for  sacrifice  in  reli- 


272  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

gion.  Forces  that  created  the  sacrifice  of  the  Mass.  The 
faith  that  accepts  the  doctrine  of  transubstantiation.  The 
moral  and  religious  effects  of  worshiping  the  wafer.  Sacra- 
mental salvation  inimical  to  preaching.  Building  as  an  act 
of  worship.  Time,  talent  and  money  expended  on  church 
and  monastic  buildings.  The  effect  of  Christian  art  and 
architecture  on  faith  and  morals  of  the  masses. 

§50 

Questions:  When  did  evangelical  sects  appear  in  west- 
ern Europe?  How  much  did  they  differ  from  the  Catho- 
lic church?  How  far  were  they  agreed  among  them- 
selves ?  What  were  the  principal  evangelical  parties  ?  Give 
an  account  of  the  Waldenses,  their  origin,  behefs  and  late'r 
history. 

Topics:  Renewed  circulation  of  the  Bible  as  related  to 
the  evangelical  revival.  Moral  and  religious  effects  of  Bible 
reading  as  seen  in  history. 

§51 

Questions:  When  did  Christians  begin  to  persecute  here- 
tics ?  What  motives  actuated  them  ?  Did  the  church  itself 
ever  execute  heretics?  Did  the  State  always  execute  the 
church's  sentences?  Upon  whom  rested  the  duty  of  appre- 
hending and  convicting  heretics  in  the  earlier  period?  How 
well  was  it  done  ?  What  new  tribunal  was  created  for  this 
purpose  ?  When  was  it  committed  to  the  Dominicans  ?  Its 
character  ?  Punishments  inflicted  ?  Number  who  perished  ? 
How  far  was  the  Catholic  church  responsible  for  these 
deaths? 

Topics:  The  psychology  of  persecution.  The  Inquisi- 
tion as  an  agency  of  ecclesiastical  and  political  tyranny. 
Effects  of  the  Inquisition  on  the  intellectual  and  moral  life 
of  Spain  and  France.  Relation  between  individual  freedom 
and  social  progress. 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY     273 

SIXTH  PERIOD  — 1305  to  1517 

§52 

Questions:  Original  home  of  the  Mongols?  Their  con- 
dition when  they  first  appeared?  Trace  their  conquest  of 
China.  Hindoostan.  Trace  the  history  of  the  branch  that 
entered  Russia.  Their  treatment  of  the  Mohammedans  of 
Persia  and  Syria  ?  The  religion  of  the  various  branches  of 
Mongols?  Tamerlane's  invasion?  The  end  of  the  west- 
ern Mongols? 

Topics:  History  of  the  Mongols.  Effects  of  the  Mon- 
gol domination  on  the  history  of  Russia.  Successes  and 
failures  of  the  peoples  of  central  Asia.  Points  of  weak- 
ness and  of  strength  in  these  peoples.  The  character  of 
their  native  religions. 

§53 

Questions:  What  completed  the  dissolution  of  the  first 
Turkish  power?  Who  began  the  organization  of  another 
Turkish  empire?  Describe  the  expansion  of  this  govern- 
ment to  the  capture  of  Constantinople.  Show  the  extent  of 
the  Turkish  empire  at  the  close  of  this  period.  Give  an 
account  of  the  treatment  of  the  Christians  by  the  Turks. 
When  and  how  did  the  Sultan  of  Turkey  become  the  spir- 
itual head  of  the  Mohammedans? 

Topics:  Conditions  that  favored  the  expansion  of  Tur- 
key. The  character  of  the  Turk  as  a  man,  a  ruler  and  a 
soldier.  General  effects  of  Turkish  domination  on  the  moral 
and  social  welfare  of  the  subject  peoples. 

§54 

Questions:  What  of  the  existence  of  Christianity  in  cen- 
tral Asia  in  this  period  ?  Prester  John  ?  What  induced  the 
Pope  to  send  missionaries  to  eastern  Asia?  What  great 
traveler  visited  the  East  ?  What  of  the  religious  conditions 
found  in  this  region  ?  How  were  the  missionaries  received  ? 
What  success  did  the  missionaries  have?  What  brought 
their  efforts  to  an  end? 

Topics:  War  and  conquest  as  occasions  for  the  spread 
of  Christianity.     Marco  Polo's  travels.     Influence  of  Chris- 


274  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

tianity  on  Buddhism  in  southern  Asia.     Christianity  and 
Buddhism  compared. 

§55 

Questions:  What  missionary  expansion  in  Russia  in  this 
period?  What  beneficent  change  in  the  government  of  the 
Russian  church?  What  role  did  monasticism  play  in  the 
Christianizing  and  civilizing  of  Russia?  How  did  this 
monasticism  differ  from  that  of  the  West?  Monastic 
buildings?  Union  with  the  Roman  Cathohc  church?  Re- 
lation of  Russian  religion  and  culture  to  Constantinople? 
National  symbols  of  that  relation? 

Topics:  Constantinople  as  an  influence  over  Slav  peo- 
ples. Relative  effectiveness  of  eastern  and  western  monas- 
ticism. The  influence  of  the  crown  over  the  life  of  the 
Russian  people.  The  sentimental  power  of  Constantinople. 
Things  that  have  retarded  the  progress  of  the  Russian  peo- 
ple. 

§56 

Questions:  Stability  of  life  in  the  West  in  this  period 
compared  with  that  of  the  East?  The  two  great  move- 
ments of  the  peoples  of  this  period?  Give  the  history  of 
the  struggle  between  the  Mohammedans  and  Christians  in 
the  Spanish  peninsula.  What  Christian  kingdoms  were 
formed?  How  did  France  and  England  become  involved 
in  the  Hundred  Years  War?  The  fortunes  of  the  strug- 
gle in  the  earlier  years?  How  was  the  tide  turned  against 
the  English  ?  How  much  of  French  territory  did  they  hold 
at  the  end  of  the  period ?    How  do  you  explain  Joan  of  Arc? 

Topics:  Decay  of  Mohammedan  power  in  Spain.  Ef- 
fects of  the  long  struggle  with  Mohammedanism  on  the 
character  of  Spanish  Christianity.  The  feudal  idea  of  the 
relation  between  the  prince  and  his  people.  The  effect  of 
the  Hundred  Years  War  on  the  subsequent  relations  of  the 
French  and  English  peoples.  Explain  the  power  of  Joan 
of  Arc.     Psychology  as  a  factor  in  war. 

§57 
Questions:     What  of  the  importance  of  the  nobility  in 
the    Middle   Ages?     What   influences   now    contributed   to 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR    FURTHER   STUDY      275 

their  downfall?  What  forces  created  the  cities?  What 
forces  contributed  to  the  rise  of  the  kings?  How  did  the 
cities  organize  for  self-defense.  What  beginnings  of  de- 
mocracy are  seen?  How  did  all  these  changes  affect  reli- 
gion? 

Topics:  Feudalism  as  a  social,  political  and  economic 
system.  Its  effects  on  religion.  Forces  operating  for  its 
ruin.  The  king  as  a  democratic  institution.  The  influence 
of  social  and  economic  organization  on  religious  life. 

§S8 

Questions:  How  did  the  popes  become  subservient  to 
France  ?  What  do  papal  historians  call  these  seventy  years  ? 
Where  was  the  papal  court  during  this  time  ?  What  caused 
the  Great  Schism?  How  was  it  finally  closed?  What  of 
the  character  of  laler  popes  of  this  period?  What  was  the 
general  effect  of  all  these  things  on  the  power  and  influence 
of  the  papacy  ? 

Topics:  Papal  power  as  a  world  menace.  Seeds  of  de- 
cay within  the  papacy  itself.  History  of  the  Council  of 
Constance.  Growing  nationalism  as  a  menace  to  papal 
power.  The  character  of  the  popes  as  a  menace  to  Chris- 
tianity. Conflicting  ideas  as  to  the  relative  authority  of 
the  Pope  and  the  Council. 

§59 

Questions:  What  four  causes  of  the  decline  of  missions 
in  the  Catholic  church?  What  success  had  the  church  in 
its  efforts  to  win  over  the  Greek  church  to  union?  What 
efforts  were  made  for  the  conversion  of  the  Mohammedans? 
Why? 

Topics:  Contact  with  the  heathen  as  a  missionary  mo- 
tive. Methods  of  bringing  American  Christians  into  con- 
tact with  missionary  needs.  Reciprocal  effects  of  home 
Christianity  and  mission  fields  upon  each  other. 

§60 

Questions:  Spread  of  the  Jewish  people?  Persecution 
by  the  Christians?     Causes  of  these  persecutions?     How 


2/6  THE    COURSE   OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

were  the  Jews  compelled  to  live?  How  did  the  Jews  be- 
come the  great  money  lenders  of  Europe?  How  far  was 
the  religious  motive  operative?  How  much  mission  work 
was  attempted  among  the  Jews?  Give  an  account  of  the 
work  of  Ferrer. 

Topics:  Comparative  failure  of  mission  work  among 
the  Jews.  Christianity's  want  of  success  among  the  fol- 
lowers of  other  forms  of  Monotheism.  Jewish  race  char- 
acteristics and  Jewish  religion  as  factors  in  their  resistance 
to  Christianity.     Racial  feeling  as  a  factor. 

§6i 

Questions:  What  is  meant  by  the  Renaissance  ?  By  Hu- 
manism? What  was  the  essence  of  the  new  spirit  in  the 
world?  In  how  many  striking  ways  did  this  new  individ- 
ualism manifest  itself?  What  was  the  new  education? 
What  part  did  the  Greek  language  and  literature  and  the 
classic  Latin  language  and  literature  have  in  the  revival? 
What  effect  did  this  education  have  upon  the  mind  of  Eu- 
rope ?  How  was  the  Greek  revived  ?  What  is  meant  by  the 
critical  spirit?  Was  it  helpful  or  hurtful  to  Christianity? 
In  what  sense  were  the  Middle  Ages  an  ''Age  of  Faith"? 
What  effect  did  the  critical  spirit  have  on  the  accumulated 
superstitions  of  the  Catholic  church?  What  part  had  the 
Bible  played  in  the  life  of  the  Middle  Ages?  Attitude  of 
the  CathoHc  church  toward  the  circulation  of  the  Bible? 
Why?  When  were  the  two  Testaments  printed  in  the  or- 
iginal languages?  When  and  where  was  the  Bible  again 
translated  into  the  language  of  the  people?  Importance  of 
this  service?  Who  did  this  work?  Introduction  of  the 
Bible  into  the  class-rooms  of  the  universities?  Great  inven- 
tions and  their  effects  —  Printing?  Mariner's  compass? 
Gunpowder?  Discovery  of  America,  of  a  sea-route  to  In- 
dia? Circumnavigation  of  the  globe?  Effects  of  these  dis- 
coveries ?  When  did  a  vernacular  literature  begin  ?  Signifi- 
cance of  this  movement?  How  did  this  prepare  for  the 
Reformation?  Name  some  of  the  great  authors  who  wrote 
in  their  vernacular.  Attitude  of  this  literature  toward  the 
church?  Development  of  Christian  painting  and  its  service 
to  the  Catholic  religion?     Some  of  the  great  Italian  painters 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY     277 

of  the  period?     Why   was   all  this   movement   sometimes 
called  Humanism? 

Topics:  The  new  spirit  abroad  in  the  world  after  the 
middle  of  the  fifteenth  century.  The  new  education  as  con- 
trasted with  the  earlier.  Italy  as  the  leader  of  the  great 
intellectual  revival.  Relation  of  intellectual  activity  and 
freedom  to  religious  reform.  Services  and  injuries  that 
have  flowed  from  the  critical  spirit.  Causes  of  Catholic 
opposition  to  the  circulation  of  the  Bible  among  the  people. 
Bible  circulation  as  an  element  in  social,  moral  and  intel- 
lectual progress.  Influence  of  geographical  discoveries  on 
the  world's  thinking.  Relation  of  printing  and  a  vernacu- 
lar literature  to  general  progress.  Christian  art  as  an  ex- 
pression of  Christian  faith. 

§62 

Questions:  Whence  came  the  demands  for  reform  of  the 
church?  Why  was  England  in  the  lead  in  making  these 
demands?  Give  an  account  of  the  life  of  Wycliffe.  His 
doctrines?  His  efforts  at  the  spreading  of  his  views? 
Treatment  of  him  and  his  followers?  Origin  of  the  re- 
formatory movement  in  Bohemia?  Who  were  the  leaders? 
Give  an  account  of  Hus'  life.  Subsequent  treatment  of  his 
followers.  Where  else  did  reformers  appear  in  this  period? 
Tell  of  the  work  of  Savonarola. 

Did  the  popes  help  or  hinder  the  new  intellectual  move- 
ment ?  Did  they  foster  or  oppose  the  movements  for  relig- 
ious reform?  How  do  you  explain  the  difference?  Con- 
dition of  the  church  on  the  eve  of  the  Reformation? 

Topics:  Religious,  moral,  political  and  intellectual  fac- 
tors in  the  stimulation  of  reform.  Source  of  Wycliffe's 
teachings.  History  and  character  of  the  Bohemians.  Con- 
demnation and  execution  of  Hus.  Failure  of  all  the  re- 
formers of  this  period.  Weakness  of  Savonarola  as  a 
reformer. 

How  and  why  the  popes  helped  the  Renaissance  and  hin- 
dered the  Reformation.  Immediate  effect  of  the  Renais- 
sance on  moral  conditions.  Permanent  effect  of  the  Renais- 
sance on  educational  methods  and  cultural  materials.  The 
Renaissance  and  the  modern  mind. 


278  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 


SEVENTH  PERIOD  1517  TO  1648 

§63 

Questions:  What  of  the  importance  of  the  Reformation? 
What  were  the  main  divisions  of  the  Christian  world  at  the 
outbreak  of  the  Reformation.  Describe  briefly  the  loca- 
tion and  condition  of  the  Greek  church.  Roman  Catholic 
church.  The  evangelical  sects.  The  non-Catholic  eastern 
churches. 

Topics:  Why  the  Eastern  churches  were  not  affected  by 
the  Revival  of  Learning.  The  number,  character  and  beliefs 
of  the  principal  evangelical  sects  at  the  beginning  of  the 
Reformation.  The  part  they  were  prepared  to  play  in  the 
coming  reform. 

§64 

Questions:  Which  of  the  great  churches  was  the  only  one 
affected  by  the  Reformation?  What  was  the  Catholic 
church  as  a  system  of  government?  What  was  its  plan  of 
salvation?  Name  the  seven  sacraments  in  logical  order. 
What  is  their  relation  to  the  work  of  salvation?  State 
clearly  the  Catholic  view  of  the  significance  of  Baptism. 
Of  Confirmation.  Of  the  Eucharist.  Of  Penance.  Of 
Marriage.  Of  Ordination.  Of  Extreme  Unction.  Doc- 
trine of  Good  Works.  Place  and  benefits  of  the  Mass  in 
the  Catholic  system?  Character  of  Catholic  worship? 
Main  elements  of  Catholic  theology?  Catholic  view  of  the 
future  life?  Significance  of  the  confessional?  Explain  the 
nature  and  the  use  of  the  indulgence.  The  scandal  of  its 
sale.     What  of  the  wealth  of  the  church  ? 

Topics:  Moral  and  religious  efifects  of  the  theory  of 
sacramental  salvation.  How  this  theory  binds  the  human 
soul.  Papal  government  as  an  essential  part  of  the  Catho- 
lic system.  Infant  baptism  as  a  basal  factor  in  the  exist- 
ence and  character  of  the  Catholic  church.  How  the  sacra- 
ments put  the  church  in  control  of  every  important  crisis  in 
life.  How  belief  in  Purgatory  helps  the  church  to  control 
the  life.  The  power  and  the  dangers  of  the  confessional. 
The  place  of  the  indulgence  in  the  every  day  religious  life 
of  the  Catholics.  The  wealth  of  the  church  as  a  source  of 
corruption. 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY      279 

§65 

Questions:  What  five  forms  did  the  Reformation  take  as 
it  developed  differences  ? 

Topics:  Causes  that  developed  divisions  in  the  ranks  of 
the  reformers.  Effects  of  personal  peculiarities  of  leaders. 
Effects  of  national  character.  Of  political  and  other  condi- 
tions. 

§66 

Questions:  Where  and  when  did  the  Reformation  begin? 
Give  an  account  of  Luther's  family  and  education.  His  en- 
trance into  a  monastery?  How  did  he  become  professor  at 
Wittenberg?  Effects  of  the  visit  to  Rome?  Effect  of  his 
teaching  on  himself?  Sale  of  indulgences  on  the  border 
of  Saxony? 

Topics:  Luther's  environment.  His  education  as  a  fac- 
tor in  his  future  history.  Rome  as  a  factor.  Bible  study 
as  a  factor. 

Questions:  What  did  Luther  propose  in  his  theses? 
Effect  of  the  theses  on  Germany?  Attitude  of  the  ecclesi- 
astical authorities?  Why  was  his  prince  able  to  protect 
him  ?  How  did  the  Pope  seek  to  suppress  him  ?  What  did 
the  Emperor  do?  Luther's  courage?  Why  kept  at  the 
Wartburg? 

Topics:  Political  conditions  in  Germany  as  affecting  the 
success  of  the  Reformation  in  that  country.  Luther's  abil- 
ity as  a  source  of  his  safety.  The  new  spirit  of  freedom  as 
a  protection  to  Luther. 

§68 

Questions:  When  did  Luther  renounce  his  monastic 
vows  and  marry?  When  was  the  reform  introduced  into 
Saxony?  How  was  the  reform  introduced?  What  was 
the  new  relation  between  church  and  state  ?  What  part  did 
the  state  play  in  the  movement?  How  rapidly  were  the 
reforms  introduced  into  other  German  states  and  how 
widely?     Where  did  the  movement  fail? 

Topics:  Difference  in  attitude  of  Catholics  and  Protes- 
tants toward  the  marriage  of  the  clergy.  Difference  in  atti- 
tude toward  monasticism.     New   relation  between  church 


280  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

and  state  in  Germany  and  its  influence  on  subsequent  his- 
tory. 

§69 

Questions:  What  was  the  first  effect  of  the  reform  on 
the  Hfe  of  the  people?  How  do  you  explain  this?  What 
doctrines  held  by  the  Catholic  church  did  Luther  retain? 
What  was  his  view  of  the  plan  of  salvation?  What  was  the 
relation  of  Lutheran  baptism  and  ordination  to  that  of  the 
Catholics?  His  view  of  the  Lord's  supper?  What  distinc- 
tive Catholic  doctrines  did  he  reject? 

Topics:  Catholic  elements  carried  over  into  Lutheran- 
ism.  Comparative  power  of  the  moral  appeal  in  Catholicism 
and  in  Lutheranism.  Justification  by  faith  as  a  religious 
principle.  Effects  of  the  abolition  of  monasticism.  Re- 
ligious and  moral  effects  of  the  marriage  of  the  clergy.  The 
moral  value  of  the  Protestant  view  of  the  future  life  as 
compared  with  the  Catholic  view. 

§70 

Questions:  Success  of  Lutheranism  in  the  Scandinavian 
countries?  Form  of  government  of  the  church  in  these 
lands?  Impressions  made  on  the  eastern  border  of  Ger- 
many? Permanency  of  the  effect  in  these  lands?  Impres- 
sion made  on  south  Germany  and  the  Austrian  lands?  Im- 
pression made  in  Italy?     In  Spain?     In  Portugal? 

Topics:  Lutheranism  as  the  Teutonic  type  of  Christian- 
ity. Reasons  for  its  failure  among  the  Poles  and  the  Bo- 
hemians. Reasons  for  its  failure  among  the  Latin  peoples. 
Catholic  governments  as  a  hindrance  to  the  progress  of  re- 
form. 

§71 

Questions:  The  character  of  Switzerland  and  its  people? 
Family  and  education  of  Zwingli?  How  did  he  reach  his 
reformatory  convictions?  Where  and  when  did  he  begin 
his  reformatory  work?  His  principle  of  reform  as  com- 
pared with  Luther's? 

What  cantons  were  reformed?  What  cantons  remained 
Catholic  ?     First  "  war  of  religion  "  ?     Fate  of  Zwingli  ? 

Topics:    Zwingli's  personality  compared  with   Luther's. 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY     281 

History  of  Switzerland  in  relation  to  the  German  empire 
and  the  Catholic  church.  Biblical  nature  of  Zwingli's 
views. 

Relation  between  topography  and  religion.  Conserva- 
tism of  country  and  mountain  people. 

Questions:  How  far  did  Zwingli  agree  with  Luther? 
How  did  he  differ  from  Luther  on  baptism  ?  On  the  Lord's 
supper?  Seriousness  of  the  latter  difference?  How  did 
Luther  view  Zwingli's  position? 

How  widely  did  Zwingli's  views  spread?  What  limited 
their  influence ?     What  became  of  the  movement  finally? 

Topics:  Moral  and  religious  value  of  Zwingli's  views  as 
compared  with  those  of  Luther.  Zwingli's  greater  emanci- 
pation from  Catholicism  than  Luther's.  The  Bible  in  the 
two  systems. 

National  boundaries  as  limitations  of  religious  influence. 
Nationalism  and  internationalism  in  their  effects  on  religion. 

Questions:  Nationality,  family  and  education  of  Calvin? 
His  record  as  a  student?  His  conversion?  Subsequent 
life  in  France?     Settlement  in  Geneva? 

Calvin's  difliculties  in  Geneva?  His  exile  and  triumphal 
return?  His  influence  in  the  city  and  canton?  His  in- 
fluence in  the  Protestant  world?  Upon  what  was  this  in- 
fluence based? 

Topics:  Mental  and  spiritual  characteristics  of  the 
French  seen  in  Calvinism.  Influence  of  the  study  of  law 
on  theology  as  seen  in  history.  Great  theologians  who  were 
educated  for  the  law.  Calvin's  position  as  related  to  those 
of  Luther  and  Zwingli.  Forces  that  led  Calvin  to  renounce 
the  Catholic  church. 

§74  .  . 
Questions:  Give  the  characteristics  of  Calvin's  theology. 
Its  influence  in  the  great  struggle  against  the  Catholic 
church?  Describe  the  Calvinistic  system  of  church  gov- 
ernment. How  does  it  compare  with  other  forms  of  de- 
mocracy?    What   three   officers   has   this    system?     What 


282  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

was  the  Calvinistic  type  of  Christian  Hfe?  What  was  the 
attitude  of  Calvinists  toward  Anabaptists  and  other  dis- 
senters from  their  national  churches?  What  was  Calvin's 
view  of  baptism  and  the  supper?  What  was  his  view  of  the 
future  life? 

Topics:  How  far  Calvin's  personal  peculiarities  enter 
into  his  system.  How  far  theology  should  be  controlled 
by  logic.  Theoretical  religious  freedom  with  actual  perse- 
cution by  Calvinists.  Effects  of  Calvinism  on  the  moral 
earnestness  of  the  people.  Effectiveness  of  the  Calvinistic 
type  of  democracy  in  church  government. 

§75 

Questions:  Difficulties  encountered  by  the  reform  in 
France?  Progress  made?  When  was  the  Calvinistic 
church  of  France  organized?  How  did  Protestantism  be- 
come a  political  party?  How  many  civil  wars  in  France? 
What  was  the  night  of  St.  Bartholomew?  When  did  the 
Protestants  obtain  the  first  enduring  peace?  What  were  the 
provisions  of  this  Edict  of  Nantes?  Progress  of  the 
Protestants  under  the  protection  of  this  Edict?  Condition 
of  the  Protestants  after  the  revocation  of  the  Edict.  Effect 
of  this  persecution  on  the  religion  and  history  of  France? 
How  were  the  Netherlands  affected  by  the  reform?  Atti- 
tude of  their  ruler  Charles  V?  Why  were  they  detached 
from  the  empire  and  transferred  to  the  crown  of  Spain? 
Effect  of  this  transfer  on  their  religious  condition?  Causes 
of  the  revolt  under  William  of  Orange?  Its  results? 
When  was  Calvinism  introduced  ?  Why  a  Calvinistic  state 
church?  The  struggle  for  religious  and  political  liberty 
and  its  effects  on  the  rest  of  the  world? 

Condition  of  Scotland  at  the  outbreak  of  the  Reforma- 
tion? Attitude  of  the  Scotch  government?  John  Knox  and 
his  conversion?  Education  and  character  of  Mary? 
Knox's  early  reformatory  efforts?  Legal  reformation  of 
the  country  in  1560?  Return  of  Mary  from  France  and 
struggle  with  Knox?  Character  of  the  state  church? 
Presbyterianism  under  James? 

Give  an  account  of  the  influence  of  Calvinism  in  Germany. 
In  Switzerland.     In  Hungary.     In  England. 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR    FURTHER   STUDY     283 

Topics:  Calvinism  as  an  international  type  of  Christian- 
ity. The  elements  of  Calvinism  which  have  most  affected 
the  world.  The  aggressive  character  of  Calvinism.  Per- 
manent marks  of  Calvinism  made  on  English  character. 
Calvinism  as  a  political  force.     As  a  social  and  moral  force. 

§76 

Qtiestions:  Relation  of  the  Anabaptists  to  earlier  sects? 
To  the  Catholic  church?  To  Luther  and  Zwingli?  Why 
did  they  break  with  the  reformers?  What  was  their  view 
of  infant-baptism?  Source  of  their  faith-baptism?  Why 
called  Anabaptists  ?  What  did  they  call  themselves  ?  Why 
and  how  were  they  opposed?  Their  later  history?  What 
are  their  most  important  doctrines  and  practices?  What 
was  their  view  of  the  state?  Of  the  constitution  of  the 
church?     What  radical  social  views  did  they  hold? 

Topics:  The  sect  life  of  the  Middle  Ages.  Its  relation 
to  the  Reformation  and  the  later  freedom  and  progress  of 
Europe.  Relation  of  Mediaeval  Christianity  to  infant  bap- 
tism. The  hold  of  infant  baptism  on  the  Christian  world. 
The  political  and  social  views  of  the  Anabaptists  as  com- 
pared with  those  of  the  modern  world. 

%77 

Questions:  Condition  of  England  at  the  outbreak  of  the 
Reformation?  Character  of  Henry?  Attitude  toward  re- 
form? Demand  for  a  divorce?  Pope's  embarrassment? 
His  policy?  Henry's  method  of  securing  the  divorce? 
When  was  he  declared  head  of  the  church? 

Topics:  The  English  Reformation  as  an  expression  of 
English  character.  Governmental  domination  of  the  reform 
in  England.  The  divorce  as  a  factor.  The  Catholic  church 
and  the  dissolution  of  marriage.  Subjection  of  the  church 
by  the  Enghsh  government. 

§78 

Questions:  Give  an  account  of  Tyndale's  work.  Cover- 
dale's  Bible?  Matthew's  Bible?  The  Great  Bible?  Dis- 
solution of  the  monasteries  and  the   confiscation  of  their 


284  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

property?     How    far   was   England   reformed   at   Henry's 
death  ? 

Topics:  Bible  translation  as  a  means  of  reform.  Monas- 
ticism  as  a  hindrance  to  reform.  Use  made  by  Protestants 
of  the  confiscated  Catholic  property.  Effects  of  state  con- 
trol of  religion  in  England. 

§79 

Questions:  Character  of  Edward  VI?  What  advance 
was  made  under  him  in  the  way  of  reform?  Origin  and 
character  of  the  "  Book  of  Common  Prayer  "  ?  The  Prot- 
estant creed  ?  Elimination  of  Catholic  priests  and  the  intro- 
duction of  Protestant  ministers  ?  What  was  the  Act  of  Uni- 
formity?    Its  effects? 

Topics:  Relation  between  the  official  reform  of  the 
church  and  the  actual  reform  of  the  people.  Advantages 
and  disadvantages  of  a  uniform  service.  Advantages  and 
disadvantages  of  a  written  service.  Wisdom  of  imposing 
one  service  on  a  entire  nation?  The  English  as  compared 
with  other  Protestant  service  books. 

§80 

Questions:  Character  and  purposes  of  Mary?  Her 
view  of  Protestantism?  How  did  she  reestablish  Catholi- 
cism? What  two  things  was  she  unable  to  restore?  Effect 
of  her  marriage  to  Philip  ?  Her  treatment  of  the  Protestant 
leaders?     Give  an  account  of  Cranmer's  weakness. 

Elizabeth's  character  and  religious  convictions?  Her  re- 
ligious life  to  the  beginning  of  her  reign?  How  did  she 
abolish  the  Catholic  church  and  restore  Protestantism?  In 
what  sense  was  her  reign  a  "  glorious  era  "  ?  Basis  of  the 
Enghsh  church? 

Topics:  England's  religious  vacillation  at  this  period. 
Permanent  effects  of  Mary's  bloody  reign  on  English  char- 
acter. Sinister  influence  of  Philip  on  European  history. 
Protestant  martyrs. 

Impress  of  Elizabeth's  character  on  the  English  church. 
Relation  of  religious  reform  to  the  outburst  of  intellectual 
activity  in  the  Elizabethan  era.     To  England's  political  and 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR    FURTHER    STUD\:     285 

military  power.     Permanent  contribution   of   Elizabeth  to 
England's  history. 

§81 

Questions:  Closeness  of  the  English  church  to  the  Cath- 
olic church?  Organization?  Ordinations  and  baptism? 
Catholic  doctrines  and  practices  abolished?  Doctrine  of 
the  supper?  Appointment  of  bishops?  Transaction  of 
former  papal  business?  Character  of  the  worship?  Sub- 
jection of  the  church  to  the  state?  Attitude  of  the  state 
toward  dissenters? 

Topics:  The  English  church  as  a  distinct  type  of  Prot- 
testantism.  Explain  the  conservatism  of  the  English  re- 
form.    Catholic  elements  finally  retained  in  the  church. 

§82 

Questions:  What  was  Puritanism?  How  was  it  intro- 
duced into  the  English  church?  Character,  influence  and 
origin  of  the  Geneva  version  of  the  Bible?  What  were 
the  chief  demands  of  Puritanism?  Its  relation  to  the  Civil 
War?     What  became  of  Puritanism? 

Topics:  Fundamental  contentions  of  Puritanism.  Why 
did  it  fail?  Its  permanent  impress  on  English  character. 
Comparative  religious  value  of  Puritanism  and  Anglicanism. 

§83 

Questions:  How  did  Puritanism  break  up?  Life  of 
Robert  Browne?  Sources  of  his  views?  The  principal 
elements  of  his  position?  The  founding  of  the  first  inde- 
pendent church?  Treatment  and  subsequent  history  of 
Browne?  Congregation  at  London?  Congregations  at 
Gainsborough  and  Scrooby?  Flight  into  Holland?  Re- 
establishment  of  Congregationalism  in  England?  Growth 
and  influence  in  that  country?  Establishment  of  Congre- 
gationalism in  America?  Growth  and  influence  in  New 
England?  Relation  of  English  Baptists  to  continental  An- 
abaptists ?  Founding  of  the  first  English  Anabaptist  church 
in  Holland  by  Smyth?  His  efforts  to  unite  with  the  Ana- 
baptists or  Mennonites  ?  First  Confession  of  Faith  and  the 
return  to  England?  Their  main  contentions?  Their  suf- 
ferings and  growth  ?    Origin  of  the  Calvinistic  English  Bap- 


286  THE    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

tists  ?  Their  reception  and  growth  ?  First  and  second  con- 
fessions? Relation  to  the  Arminian  Baptists?  How  both 
differed  from  the  continental  Anabaptists?  Establishment 
of  the  two  parties  of  Baptists  in  America  ?  Difficulties  and 
growth?  Relations  with  each  other?  Other  parties  de- 
veloped in  America?  Their  contribution  to  religious  free- 
dom in  America? 

Origin  of  the  Quakers?  Fox's  experience?  Principal 
doctrines  of  the  Quakers?  Treatment  by  the  English  and 
colonial  governments?  Woman's  work  among  them? 
Their  relation  to  Pennsylvania?     Their  ultimate  influence? 

Topics:  Influence  of  the  Anabaaptists  in  the  struggle  for 
religious  freedom.  Relation  of  infant  baptism  to  religious 
persecution.  Relation  of  faith-baptism  to  religious  free- 
dom. Browne's  democracy  compared  with  that  of  Calvin. 
Relation  of  the  English  Baptists  to  the  English  Congrega- 
tionalists.  Infant  baptism  in  the  Congregational  system. 
Moral  and  religious  significance  of  faith-baptism.  Funda- 
mental contentions  of  Quakerism.  Its  efficiency  as  a  form 
of  Christian  faith? 

§84 

Questions:  Early  effects  of  the  Reformation  on  the 
Catholic  church?  Action  of  Catholic  princes?  The  em- 
peror's efforts  ?  What  seems  to  be  the  main  cause  of  failure 
in  the  reform  movement? 

§85 

Questions:  History  of  Ignatius  Loyola?  Formation  of 
the  Society  of  Jesus?  What  was  his  purpose?  How  are 
members  admitted?  How  educated?  Character  of  the  or- 
ganization? Its  methods?  Influence  of  the  Jesuits?  Their 
efforts  to  stop  the  Reformation?  Their  relation  to  the 
Thirty  Years  War? 

Topics:  The  Jesuits  as  an  expression  of  Spanish  Chris- 
tianity. Effects  of  Jesuit  training  on  the  intellectual  and 
moral  Hfe  of  the  individual.  On  the  Catholic  church  as  a 
whole.  The  moral  precepts  of  the  Jesuits.  Jesuit  support 
of  papal  pretensions.  Jesuit  influence  on  the  subsequent 
history  of  the  Catholic  church.  Their  missionary  methods 
and  history.     Loyola's  "  Spiritual  Exercises." 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY      287 

§86 

Questions:  Why  had  the  Protestants  wanted  a  Council? 
Why  had  the  emperor  desired  one?  Why  were  the  popes 
unwilhng?  What  finally  induced  the  pope  to  hold  one? 
Size,  date  and  character  of  the  Council  of  Trent?  What 
two  lines  of  subjects  did  it  consider?  What  did  it  accom- 
pHsh  ? 

Topics:  History  of  church  councils.  Constitution,  con- 
trol and  methods  of  the  Council  of  Trent.  How  far  church 
councils  express  the  convictions  of  their  entire  constituency. 
The  history  of  councils  as  affecting  the  validity  of  their 
conclusions. 


§87 

Questions:  When  did  the  Catholics  bring  the  Reforma- 
tion to  an  end?  Where  did  they  stamp  the  movement  out 
entirely?  Results  in  France?  Ireland  and  Belgium? 
What  success  in  other  Protestant  lands?  What  gains  did 
they  make  through  colonization  ?  What  gains  through  mis- 
sions in  America  ?  In  eastern  lands  ?  What  finally  became 
of  these  promising  missions? 

Topics:  Motives  that  led  Protestants  to  join  the  Cath- 
olic church.  Missionary  zeal  of  the  Catholics  as  compared 
with  the  inactivity  and  opposition  of  the  Protestants.^  Ra- 
pidity of  conversion  in  Catholic  missions.  Instability  of 
the  convert  and  the  work  generally.  Catholic  missionary 
methods  as  compared  with  those  of  Protestants.  Life  of 
Loyola.     Of   Xavier.     Jesuit  missionaries   in  America. 


Questions:  Catholic  reforms  concerning  Indulgences,  Ed- 
ucation of  the  clergy,  Preaching  and  Instruction,  Bible 
Translation,  the  Popes. 

Topics:  Public  criticism  as  a  stimulus  to  church  reform. 
Protestant  opposition  a  means  of  uplift  to  the  Catholics. 
Effect  of  Catholicism  on  the  moral  and  spiritual  life  of 
Protestants.  How  far  the  popes  are  a  moral  and  religious 
influence  in  the  Catholic  church. 


288  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

§89 

Questions:  Why  did  the  Reformation  become  a  political 
question?  Name  the  various  religious  wars  with  their  re- 
sults in  Switzerland,  Germany,  France,  the  Netherlands. 
Give  an  account  of  the  Thirty  Years  War.  The  Peace  of 
Westphalia.  Attitude  of  the  pope  to  this  treaty  and  his 
subsequent  .influence  on  international  relations. 

Topics:  Religious  differences  as  incitements  to  war. 
Were  the  results  of  these  wars  favorable  to  Catholics  or 
Protestants?  The  pope  as  an  instigator  of  war.  Social 
economic  and  religious  effects  of  the  Thirty  Years  War. 

§90 

Questions:  How  much  of  the  world's  territory  was 
Christian  at  the  beginning  of  this  period?  Why  had  Chris- 
tianity not  spread  for  some  centuries?  What  now  opened 
the  way  for  further  expansion?  Where  did  the  Spanish 
and  Portuguese  settle  and  what  religion  did  they  carry  with 
them?  Where  did  Protestants  settle?  What  types  were 
represented  and  what  eventually  became  of  them?  Ex- 
pansion of  Russia  and  the  Greek  church? 

Topics:  Relation  of  discovery  and  colonization  to  the 
expansion  of  Christianity.  Compare  those  portions  of  the 
new  world  settled  by  Catholics  with  those  settled  by  Prot- 
estants as  to  political  and  social  progress,  intellectual,  moral 
and  reHgious  attainments.  Causes  of  the  differences  dis- 
covered. 


EIGHTH  PERIOD  1648  TO  1789 

§91 
Questions:    What  difficulties  in  the  presentation  of  our 
materials  from  this  point  onward?     What  of  Christian  di- 
visions and   strifes  as   compared   with   the  past?     Special 
causes  of  divisions  in  English  Christianity? 

§92 

Questions:     The  principle  of  authority  in  the  Reforma- 
tion?    Right  of  private  interpretation  of  the  Bible?     Au- 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY     289 

thority  of  creeds?  Effect  on  religious  freedom?  Religious 
strife  as  a  cause  of  skepticism?  Rejection  of  the  principle 
of  authority?  What  is  Rationalism?  What  did  its  ad- 
vocates expect  of  it?  Forms  of  skepticism?  Countries 
affected?  What  effect  did  this  rationalism  have  upon  re- 
ligious beliefs  and  practices?  What  effect  even  on  those 
who  remained  orthodox?     What  effect  on  morals? 

Topics:  The  Principle  of  Authority  in  Religion.  The 
Principle  of  Freedom  in  Religion.  The  function  of  reason 
in  life.  In  religion.  The  optimism  of  Rationalism.  Its 
bitterness  toward  the  Christian  religion.  Moral  effects  of 
the  various  forms  of  skepticism. 

§93 
Questions:  Decline  of  the  individual  churches  and  de- 
nominations? Two  tendencies?  Condition  of  the  state 
churches?  Of  the  free  churches  of  England  and  America 
— Baptists,  Congregationalists  and  Quakers?  Tendencies 
on  the  continent?  Beginnings  of  improvement  toward  the 
end  of  the  period? 

§94 

Questions:  Effect  of  Rationalism  on  the  Catholic  church? 
Struggle  between  France  and  the  papacy?  What  were  the 
Gallican  Liberties?  Revival  of  Augustinianism  in  France 
and  its  effects  ?  Great  preachers  in  this  period  ?  Condition 
at  the  close  of  the  period?  Free  thought  in  Austria?  Re- 
forms of  Joseph  II?  Threat  of  separating  German  Cath- 
olics from  the  papacy?  Why  did  these  reforms  not  last? 
What  created  a  demand  for  the  suppression  of  the  Jesuits? 
What  countries  banished  them  and  why?  When  and  by 
whom  were  they  suppressed? 

Topics:  Comparative  effects  of  Rationalism  on  the  Cath- 
olic and  Protestant  churches.  Reasons  for  the  difference. 
How  far  is  rationalism  constructive?  Relation  between 
faith  and  reason  in  the  religious  life.  Causes  of  the  sup- 
pression of  the  Jesuits. 

§95 
Questions:    Dangers  of  freedom?    What  is  meant  by  in- 
tellectual freedom?    Effect  of  the  new  freedom  on  philo- 


290 


THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 


sophy?  Attitude  toward  the  church?  Effect  on  supersti- 
tions and  errors?  Effect  on  truth?  What  is  meant  by 
poUtical  freedom?  A  new  republic?  Limitations  on  kings 
and  princes?  How  much  gain  was  this?  What  is  meant 
by  rehgious  freedom?  Who  was  the  first  to  estabhsh  a 
government  with  absolute  religious  freedom?  What  effect 
had  religious  freedom  in  the  federal  constitution  upon  the 
religious  establishments  in  the  states  ?  Progress  of  religious 
freedom  in  the  period  since  Williams  ?  What  was  the  char- 
acter of  the  education  of  the  Middle  Ages?  What  classes 
were  educated?  How  was  education  supported?  What 
changes  as  to  the  diffusion  and  the  support  of  education 
since  the  Reformation?  The  freedom  and  expansion  of  the 
press  ? 

Topics:  Losses  and  gains  of  freedom.  Difference  be- 
tween liberty  and  license.  The  world's  gains  and  losses 
in  the  eighteenth  century.  Blessings  and  dangers  of  intel- 
lectual freedom.  Of  political  freedom.  Of  religious  free- 
dom.    How  are  the  dangers  of  freedom  to  be  avoided? 

§96 

Questions:  Evangelical  truth  and  light  not  dead  but  only 
hidden?  Why  is  the  German  revival  called  Pietism?  Life 
and  work  of  Spener?  His  views?  Attitude  of  the  state 
church  of  Germany?  Founding  of  the  University  of  Halle? 
Halle  Orphan  House?  Weakness  of  Spener's  movement? 
Causes  of  final  failure?  Moral  and  religious  condition  of 
the  American  colonies  ?  What  is  meant  by  the  "  Great 
Awakening"?  Life  and  work  of  Jonathan  Edwards? 
Work  of  Whitefield  in  America?  Permanent  effects  of  the 
revival?  Moral  and  religious  condition  of  Britain  in  the 
early  eighteenth  century?  Family  and  education  of  the 
Wesleys?  Of  Whitefield?  Their  conversion?  Their 
preaching?  Opposition  of  the  English  church?  Why  field 
preaching?  Character  of  their  preaching  and  singing? 
How  did  they  take  care  of  their  converts?  Show  how  the 
Methodist  organization  was  created.  Source  of  the  Meth- 
odist type  of  piety?  Organization  of  independent  Meth- 
odist churches  in  America  and  England?  Effects  of  the 
evangelical  revival  on  the  life  of  England  and  America? 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY     29I 

Topics:  Compare  the  German  and  English  revivals  and 
explain  the  differences.  Relation  between  the  American 
and  the  English  revivals'.  Cultured  preachers  as  revival- 
ists. Religious  and  moral  decay  as  a  background  for  re- 
vivals. Permanent  effects  of  a  revival  on  the  life  of  the 
people.     Characteristics  of  eras  preceding  great  revivals. 

§97 

Questions:  Extent  of  Catholic  missions  in  this  period? 
Their  success  in  the  far  East  ?  In  Central  and  South  Amer- 
ica? When  and  where  were  the  earliest  missionary  efforts 
of  Protestants?  Who  was  the  first  in  America?  When, 
where  and  how  did  concerted  effort  among  Protestants  be- 
gin? Describe  the  Danish-Halle  Mission  and  its  work. 
Describe  the  organization  of  the  "  United  Brethren."  Tell 
of  their  devotion  to  foreign  missions. 

Topics:  Causes  of  the  long  delay  of  Protestants  in  en- 
tering upon  foreign  missionary  work.  Colonies  as  mission 
fields.  Missionary  interest  and  work  of  German  Protest- 
ants. Life  of  Zinzendorf.  History  of  the  Unitas  Frch 
trum. 

NINTH  PERIOD  1789  TO  1917 

§98 

Questions:  What  of  the  progress  of  the  world  in  this 
last  period?  What  of  the  increasing  complexity  of  life? 
Causes  of  complexity? 

What  as  to  the  amount  of  improvement  in  political  con- 
ditions? What  of  the  extension  of  constitutional  gov- 
ernment and  its  benefits  to  the  people?  What  of  the 
extension  of  the  republic  as  a  form  of  government  and 
its  efficiency  and  blessings?  Development  of  democracy 
within  the  various  nations?  Points  of  advance  in  this  re- 
gard? Colonization  by  Russia?  England?  Partition  of 
Africa?  Decline  of  Turkey?  Of  Spain?  Expansion  of 
the  United  States?  Of  Russia?  Rise  of  China  and  Japan? 
Unification  and  growth  of  Germany?  Of  Italy?  Points  in 
which  the  state  expanded  its  functions  in  this  period? 

Topics:     Explanation  of  the  tremendous  progress  of  the 


292  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

last  period.  Political  progress  as  an  index  and  a  help  to 
general  progress.  Gains  and  losses  in  the  state's  control 
and  support  of  education  and  charities.  Gains  and  losses 
in  passing  from  autocracy  to  democracy.  Gains  and  losses 
in  national  consolidation  and  unification.  The  increasing 
nationalism  of  the  period.     Its  dangers  and  promise. 

§99 

Questions:  What  of  general  improvement  of  social  con- 
ditions? How  have  living  conditions  been  improved?  Ef- 
fect of  crowding  into  the  cities?  Decline  of  the  nobility? 
Disappearance  of  slavery  and  serfdom?  Improvement  in 
the  condition  of  the  laboring  classes?  Diffusion  of  educa- 
tion and  its  effects?  Cheapening  of  books  and  periodicals? 
Problems  of  literacy?  Increase  in  military  establishments? 
Why?  Increase  in  the  use  of  machinery  and  its  effects? 
Progress  in  the  mastery  of  the  powers  of  nature?  Effects 
of  ease  of  communication  and  transportation?  Progress  of 
women. 

Topics:  Relation  between  living  conditions  and  morals. 
Between  living  conditions  and  religious  faith.  Advantages 
and  dangers  of  large  leisure.  Effects  of  the  great  material 
progress  on  the  spiritual  values  of  life.  Moral  and  re- 
ligious effects  of  the  diffusion  of  education  and  the  expan- 
sion of  the  press.  Effects  of  woman's  increased  activities 
upon  the  rehgious  and  moral  conditions  of  the  world.  Upon 
woman's  own  character. 

§  100 

Questions:  Disappearance  of  slavery  and  serfdom?  At- 
titude towards  alcholic  beverages  at  the  beginning  of  the 
period?  Extent  of  drinking?  Tendency  at  present? 
What  success?  Success  in  fighting  the  gambling  evil?  In 
the  abolition  of  dueling  in  America?  In  other  lands? 
What  of  vice  or  the  "  social  evil  "  ? 

Topics:  Forces  operating  toward  moral  reform.  Forces 
in  modern  life  that  tend  to  lower  moral  standards  and  living. 
Moral  history  of  mankind  during  the  last  century  and  a 


QUESTIONS   AND  SUGGESTIONS  FOR   FURTHER  STUDY     293 
§  lOI 

Questions:  Present  status  of  dissenters  in  countries 
which  have  estabhshed  churches?  What  countries  have 
estabhshed  churches  at  present?  In  vi^hat  countries  has 
complete  disestabhshment  and  consequent  reUgious  free- 
dom been  estabhshed?     The  outlook  in  other  lands? 

Protestant  missions  in  the  preceding  period?  Protestant 
missions  in  this  period?  The  pioneer  in  the  English  speak- 
ing world?  Date  of  the  organization  of  the  Baptist  Mis- 
sionary Society?  Organization  of  similar  societies  by  other 
denominations  in  England  and  America?  What  nations 
have  taken  the  lead  in  foreign  missions?  What  has  been 
accomplished  in  the  way  of  equipment?  In  converts?  Re- 
flex influence  of  foreign  missions? 

What  had  the  Reformation  done  for  the  translation  and 
circulation  of  the  Bible?  What  was  done  in  the  way  of  the 
exploration  of  Bible  lands  and  the  consistent  study  of  the 
Bible?  What  has  been  done  in  this  period  in  the  study  of 
Bible  lands,  peoples  and  customs?  Translations  and  cir- 
culation? Study  of  the  original  text,  writing  of  commen- 
taries, etc.?  Development  of  the  Sunday  school  as  an 
agency  for  Bible  study  and  religious  education? 

Causes  of  the  forming  of  extra-ecclesiastical  organiza- 
tions? Name  some  of  the  most  important  of  these  or- 
ganizations and  describe  their  work.  What  of  them  as  a 
feature  of  religious  life? 

The  position  of  the  layman  in  the  Mediaeval  church?  At- 
titude of  the  reformers  toward  the  layman  and  his  work? 
What  parties  gave  large  place  to  the  layman  in  the  Reforma- 
tion period?  His  work  in  the  nineteenth  century?  Or- 
ganizations and  positions  in  which  he  works? 

What  place  did  the  Mediaeval  church  have  for  woman's 
activities?  What  did  the  Reformers  do  for  her?  What 
parties  at  the  Reformation  granted  her  some  freedom? 
What  position  has  the  nineteenth  century  opened  for  her  in 
religious  work?  How  has  she  prepared  for  her  enlarged 
opportunities? 

What  did  infant  baptism  do  for  the  young?  Why  did 
not  evangelical  Christians  expect  early  conversions?  What 
of  the  average  age  of  conversion  in  this  last  period?     How 


294  "^^^    COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

has  this  changed  the  church  organizations,  services  and  gen- 
eral tone  ?     Is  this  healthy  ? 

What  is  evangelism?  What  view  of  religion  does  it  nec- 
essarily antagonize?  Extent  of  evangelism  at  present? 
Causes  of  this  evangelistic  activity  ?  Why  must  evangelism 
specially  characterize  those  bodies  that  reject  infant  bap- 
tism?    Forms  of  evangelism?     What  of  the  future? 

Extent  of  infant  baptism  during  the  Middle  Ages?  At- 
titude of  the  Catholic  church  toward  those  who  rejected  it? 
What  did  the  great  reforming  parties  do  with  infant  bap- 
tism? What  of  the  Anabaptists?  Progress  of  faith-bap- 
tism before  the  attainment  of  religious  freedom?  Decline 
of  infant  baptism  in  recent  years?  Its  causes?  Growth  of 
the  bodies  who  practice  only  faith-baptism  in  recent  years? 
Number  who  now  practice  only  faith-baptism? 

Beneficence  in  the  early  days  of  Protestantism?  More 
recent  tendencies? 

What  of  skepticism  and  opposition  to  Christianity  in  the 
Middle  Ages?  What  of  this  growth  in  modern  times? 
Various  forms?  How  far  have  skeptics  accepted  Christian 
ethics?     Nietzsche? 

What  of  Christian  divisions  since  the  Reformation? 
Why?  What  is  the  more  recent  tendency?  Notable  cases 
of  union  in  recent  years?  Of  federation  and  cooperation 
where  union  is  not  contemplated? 

Topics:  Progress  of  toleration  and  religious  freedom  in 
the  last  period.     Causes  of  this. 

Protestant  missions  as  an  expression  of  the  fundamental 
impulse  of  Christianity.  Influence  of  missions  on  recent 
world  movements.  Reflex  influence  of  missions  on  home 
Christianity.  Moral  and  social  influence  of  missions  on 
non-Christian  lands. 

Reciprocal  influence  of  modern  civilization  and  Bible  cir- 
culation on  each  other.  Contribution  of  the  last  period  to 
better  knowledge  of  the  Bible. 

Significance  of  extra-ecclesiastical  organizations.  Their 
influence  on  the  life  of  the  churches  and  on  Christianity  in 
general. 

The  *'  laicising "  of  Christianity  in  the  last  period.  Its 
significance  for  the  future. 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY     29$ 

Place  and  importance  of  woman's  activities  in  modern 
Christianity.  Its  probable  effects  on  the  character  and  ag- 
gressiveness of  Christianity. 

Infant  baptism  as  a  support  of  sacramental  Christianity. 
Place  of  infant  baptism  in  evangelical  Christianity  ?  Causes 
and  effects  of  its  decline  in  the  last  period.  Total  effects  of 
the  incorporation  of  the  young  into  the  churches. 

Relation  between  evangelism  and  the  voluntary  principle. 
Effects  of  religious  freedom  and  faith-baptism  on  the  need 
of  evangelism. 

Extent  and  causes  of  the  growth  of  opposition  to  Chris- 
tianity in  modern  times.  Power  of  Christian  ethics  in 
theory  and  practice. 

Forces  of  the  modern  world  operating  to  bring  about 
Christian  cooperation  and  in  some  cases  union.  Its  promises 
and  its  dangers. 

§102 

Questions:  Location  of  the  Greek  Catholic  church? 
Nationalities  which  are  members?  Causes  of  their  back- 
wardness? Their  services  to  the  rest  of  Christendom? 
What  divisions  has  it?  In  what  sense  is  it  one?  In  what 
respects  does  it  agree  and  in  what  differ  from  the  Roman 
church?  What  languages  do  the  various  divisions  use? 
How  many  are  national  churches  established  by  law  ? 

Topics:  Past  services  of  the  Greek  Catholic  church  to 
the  history  of  the  world.  What  promise  is  in  the  church  for 
the  future.  Its  theology  compared  to  that  of  the  Roman 
church.  Its  worship  thus  compared.  Its  monasticism  and 
views  of  marriage. 

§103 

Questions:  Present  number  of  Orthodox  Christians  in 
Turkey?  How  is  the  church  organized  and  governed? 
What  is  the  condition  of  these  Christians?  What  other 
churches  are  subject  to  the  patriarch  of  Constantinople? 
The  churches  of  Sinai  and  Cyprus? 

§  104 
Questions:     Progress  of  Russia  in  the  last  period  ?     Edu- 
cation  in   Russia?     Organization   and   government  of   the 


296  THE    COURSE    OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

church?  Relation  to  the  civil  government?  Condition  of 
the  church  in  general  ?  Sects  in  Russia  ?  Roman  Catholics 
and  Protestants?  Other  religions?  Religious  persecution 
in  Russia? 

Topics:  The  Russian  people  and  the  Russian  church. 
The  religious  and  moral  nature  of  the  Russian.  The  Rus- 
sian church  at  present  a  hindrance  or  a  help  to  the  Russian 
people?     The  sect  life  of  Russia  as  a  promise. 

§105 

Questions:  When  and  how  did  Greece  gain  her  inde- 
pendence of  Turkey?  How  was  her  church  organized? 
What  of  its  membership  and  efficiency?  What  other  than 
Orthodox  Christians  are  found  in  Greece? 

Topics:  Grecian  struggle  for  independence.  Blight  left 
behind  by  Turkey  even  after  her  expulsion.  The  modern 
Greek  compared  with  the  ancient.  Causes  of  the  differ- 
ences. 

§106 

Questions:  Bulgaria's  struggle  for  independence?  The 
organization  of  her  church  ?  Religious  freedom  and  state 
support?  Other  Christians  beside  the  Orthodox?  Work 
of  Methodists?  Struggle  of  Servia  for  freedom?  How 
the  church  is  organized  and  governed?  Backwardness  of 
the  Servians?  Religious  intolerance?  Other  religions? 
Progress  of  Roumania  since  gaining  her  freedom?  Organ- 
ization and  government  of  the  church?  Religious  free- 
dom? Cultural  progress?  The  other  Orthodox  churches 
mentioned  above? 

Topics:  Race,  history  and  present  moral  and  cultural 
status  of  the  Bulgars.  Balkan  antipathies  and  hatreds  with 
their  causes.  History  and  sufferings  of  the  Serbs.  Prob- 
able effects  of  the  present  war  on  their  social,  political,  moral 
and  religious  life.  Racial  descent  and  history  of  the  Rou- 
manians. Present  cultural  status.  Probable  effects  of  the 
war  on  this  country. 

§107 

Questions:  What  was  the  status  of  the  Greek  Catholic 
church  at  the  beginning  of  the  period?     What  new  king- 


QUESTIONS    AND   SUGGESTIONS    FOR    FURTHER   STUDY      297 

doms  have  arisen  during  the  last  period?  What  progress 
has  Russia  made?  How  does  this  church  stand  in  relation 
to  the  other  great  divisions  of  Christendom  at  present  ? 

Topics:  The  Greek  Catholic  or  Orthodox  church  as  a 
factor  in  the  future  moral,  religious,  social  and  political 
history  of  the  world.  Elements  of  vitaHty  and  power  in  it. 
Elements  of  weakness  and  backwardness. 

§108 

Question:  What  has  been  the  general  history  of  this 
group  of  churches? 

§109 

Questions:  Location  of  the  Armenians?  Their  suffer- 
ings in  the  past?  Their  number?  Organization  of  the 
Armenian  Church?  View  of  Christ?  Principal  ecclesias- 
tical practices?  Language  of  worship?  Work  of  Ameri- 
can Congregationalists  among  them? 

§110 

Questions:  Location  and  number  of  the  Nestorians? 
Language  of  worship?  Work  of  American  Presbyterians 
among  them?  Origin  of  the  Jacobites?  Their  numbers 
and  faith? 

§  III 

Questions:  Number  and  origin  of  the  Copts  ?  Their  suf- 
ferings? Religious  views  and  practices?  Work  of  the 
Presbyterians  among  them?  Location,  numbers,  history 
and  present  political  condition  of  the  Abyssinians  ?  Govern- 
ment of  their  church?  Beliefs  and  practices?  Language 
of  worship?    Attitude  toward  other  Christians? 

§  112 

Questions:  Meaning  of  the  term  Uniats  ?  How  do  they 
differ  from  Greek  and  Roman  Catholics? 

Topics:  The  possibility  of  reviving  all  these  eastern 
heretical  churches.  The  obligation  of  Protestant  Christians 
to  them. 

§113 

Questions:     Treatment   of   the   CathoHc   church  by   the 


298  THE    COURSE    OF    CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

French  Revolution?  Its  recognition  by  Napoleon?  His 
subsequent  confiscation  of  the  papal  state  and  imprisonment 
of  the  pope?  Pope  transferred  to  France?  Restoration  by 
the  Congress  of  Vienna?  Period  of  reaction  and  papal 
gain?  Gradual  amalgamation  of  the  states  of  Italy  into 
one  country?  Capture  of  Rome  and  confiscation  of  the 
papal  state?  Pope  a  sovereign  in  the  Vatican?  Present 
position  of  the  pope  as  to  temporal  sovereignty  ?  Evidences 
of  the  increase  of  the  pope's  power  over  the  Catholic 
church?  What  is  the  doctrine  of  the  Immaculate  Concep- 
tion? When  promulgated?  What  the  Syllabus  of  Errors? 
When  published?  In  what  sense  is  the  pope  considered  in- 
fallible? Effect  of  this  decree  on  his  influence  in  the 
church?  Number  and  location  of  the  Catholics?  To  what 
race  do  they  mainly  belong?  What  nations  are  predom- 
inately Catholic  ?  Gains  of  the  Catholic  church  —  reen- 
tering Protestant  lands?  Growth  in  the  United  States? 
New  states  of  Belgium  and  Latin  America?  Italy?  Mis- 
sions? Losses  in  the  decline  of  Spain,  Portugal  and  Aus- 
tria? Loss  of  power  in  Catholic  states?  Decline  of  mo- 
nasticism?  Protestant  missions  in  Catholic  lands?  W^hat 
is  Modernism?  How  influential  is  it?  How  does  the 
church  oppose  the  entrance  of  all  modern  ideas  into  its 
membership?  Probabilities  for  the  future?  Contribution 
of  the  Catholics  to  scholarship  and  learning  in  the  last  pe- 
riod? Treatment  of  its  great  men?  Probabilities  for  the 
future? 

Topics:  Democracy  as  an  enemy  of  papal  sovereignty. 
The  reaction  following  the  French  Revolution.  Confisca- 
tion of  the  papal  state  a  loss  or  gain  to  the  papacy  ?  In  what 
sense  is  the  pope  the  "sovereign  pontiff"?  The  influence 
which  the  increasing  power  of  the  pope  within  the  Catholic 
church  is  having  on  that  body.  The  place  which  Mary 
and  the  other  saints  fill  in  the  popular  thought  and  worship 
of  the  church.  Attitude  of  the  church  to  the  modern 
world  as  revealed  by  the  Syllabus  of  Errors  and  the  fight 
on  Modernism.  Infallibility  as  a  dogma  and  in  practice. 
Value  of  Catholicism  as  seen  in  the  present  condition  of 
Catholic  nations.  Causes  of  the  mutual  antagonism  of  the 
Catholic  church  and  modern  scholarship  and  social  effort. 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY      299 
§  114 

Questions:  Trace  the  process  of  unifying  Italy.  What 
was  left  to  the  pope?  Italy's  progress  since  the  unification? 
Expansion  ?  Number  and  character  of  the  population  ? 
Religious  conditions?  Atheism  of  the  government?  Mo- 
nasticism?  Education  and  culture?  Church  buildings  and 
art?     Moral  and  religious  conditions  in  general? 

Topics:  How  far  the  Catholic  church  is  responsible  for 
the  present  condition  of  Italy.  Catholicism  as  a  provoker 
of  Atheism.  Catholicism  as  a  hindrance  to  general  educa- 
tion and  culture.  Comparative  progress  of  Catholic  and 
Atheistic  Italy.  Attitude  of  cultured  Italy  toward  the 
Catholic  church  and  religion  in  general. 

§115 

Questions:  The  political  history  of  France  since  the 
Revolution?.  Population  and  birth  rate?  Religion  under 
Napoleon's  arrangement?  Separation  of  church  and  state 
and  present  arrangement?  Struggle  with  the  monks  and 
nuns  over  the  schools?  Religion  and  the  schools  at  the 
present  time?  Monasticism?  Church  buildings  in  France? 
Number  and  influence  of  Protestants  ?  Their  religious  con- 
dition? Present  moral  and  religious  condition  as  a  whole 
in  France?  The  French  colonies  and  their  religious  condi- 
tion? 

Topics:  Religious  conditions  in  France  as  an  outcome 
of  its  history.  The  great  struggle  over  the  schools.  Strug- 
gle with  monasticism.  Superstitions  fostered  by  the  church. 
Missionary  zeal  of  the  French  Catholics.  Causes  of  Athe- 
ism in  France. 

§116 

Questions:  Tremendous  decline  of  Spain?  Present 
population  ?  Illiteracy  ?  Religious  complexion  of  the  coun- 
try? Abolition  of  the  Inquisition?  Status  of  Protestants? 
Monasticism?  Free  Thinking?  Attitude  of  the  cultured 
classes? 

Topics:  History  of  Spain  in  Nineteenth  Century  and  its 
lessons.  Religious  intolerance  as  a  clog  on  progress.  At- 
titude of  the  church  toward  education. 


300  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

§117 

Questions:  Population  of  Portugal?  Colonies?  Edu- 
cational and  religious  status?  Treatment  of  the  monas- 
teries?   Disestablishment?     Protestant  missions? 

§118 

Questions:  Union  with  and  separation  from  the  king- 
dom of  the  Netherlands?  Her  neutrality?  Colony? 
Character  of  the  people  ?  Relation  between  church  and 
state?  Number  and  status  of  Protestants?  Monasticism? 
Struggle  between  liberals  and  clericals  ? 

§119 

Questions:  Sketch  the  political  history  of  Austria  dur- 
ing the  last  period.  Present  status  of  the  sovereign  in  Aus- 
tria and  Hungary?  Relation  between  these  two  portions 
of  the  empire?  Main  elements  in  the  mixed  population  of 
the  country?  Religious  complexion  of  the  country? 
Status  of  the  Catholic  church?  Character  of  this  church 
in  Austria?  Presence  of  Protestants?  Work  of  Baptists? 
Religious  freedom? 

Topics:  Causes  of  decline  in  the  standing  of  Austria. 
Complexity  of  racial  and  religious  life.  The  Catholic  reli- 
gion as  a  provocation  in  the  present  war.  Relation  between 
Austria  and  the  Vatican  in  recent  years.  History,  charac- 
ter and  religion  of  the  Hungarians. 

§  120 

Questions:  Change  in  the  political  status  of  the  Latin- 
American  countries  in  the  last  period?  Racial  complexion 
of  these  lands?  Recent  immigration?  Present  social  and 
political  conditions?  Position  of  the  Catholic  church  in 
these  countries?  Schools  and  education?  Moral  and  reli- 
gious conditions  ?     Monasticism  ?    Religious  freedom  ? 

Topics:  Moral  and  social  results  of  racial  mixtures  in 
these  countries.  Causes  of  the  instability  of  governments. 
Causes  of  the  violence  and  incompetence  of  the  people.  The 
moral  weakness  of  the  people. 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR    FURTHER   STUDY      3OI 
§121 

Questions:  Freedom  granted  these  islands?  Educa- 
tional and  economic  progress  since  that  date  ?  Recent  Prot- 
estant work? 

§  122 

Questions:  Remnants  of  Catholics  left  in  Germany  by 
the  '*  ecclesiastical  reservations  act "  ?  Catholics  in  south 
Germany?  Gains?  The  CathoHcs  as  a  force  in  politics  of 
Germany?  Percentage  of  Catholics  in  Germany?  Their 
general  character?  Small  percentage  of  Catholics  in  the 
Scandinavian  countries?  Catholicism  never  entirely  sup- 
pressed in  Britain  and  Ireland?  Recovery  of  civil  rights? 
Reorganization  of  the  hierarchy?  Increase  and  present 
numbers  in  England  and  Wales,  Scotland  and  Ireland? 
Character  of  the  English  Catholics?  Catholics  in  the  Brit- 
ish colonies?  Rate  of  growth  in  the  United  States?  Rea- 
son? Numbers  and  equipment?  Conversions  of  Protes- 
tants?    Character  of  American  Catholics? 

Topics:  Influence  of  Catholics  in  Protestant  lands. 
Subservience  of  public  officials.  Relation  of  the  Catholics 
to  the  minor  municipal  offices.  Catholics  as  an  influence 
on  our  moral,  spiritual  and  social  life.  Are  they  a  political 
menace  ? 

§123 
Questions:     Catholic  activity  in  mision  work?     How  di- 
rected?    How  supported?     Character  of  the  work  done? 
Who    furnishes    the    missionaries?     Catholic    methods    of 
counting  converts  ? 

§124 

Questions:  Progress  of  Protestants  in  this  period?  The 
three  greatest  states?  Social  conditions  in  Protestant  as 
compared  with  Catholic  countries?  Protestant  divisions 
and  growing  fellowship? 

Topics:  Social  value  of  Protestant  as  compared  with 
Catholic  principles.  Political  value.  Freedom  and  content- 
ment as  bonds  of  political  union.  Significance  for  the  fu- 
ture of  growing  Protestant  fellowship. 


302  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

§125 

Questions:  Size  and  location  of  the  Lutheran  group? 
Racial  relations  and  homogeneity  ?  Organization  in  various 
lands  ? 

Union  of  Lutheran  and  "  Reformed  "  in  several  of  the 
German  states  ?  Relation  between  church  and  state  ?  Edu- 
cation and  religious  instruction?  Theological  faculties  and 
seminaries?  Contribution  of  the  Germans  to  theological 
culture  ?  To  practical  Christian  efforts  and  missions  ?  The 
deaconess  movement  and  its  service?  Other  Protestants  in 
Germany?     Origin  and  work  of  the  Baptists? 

Topics:  Religious  history  of  Germany  in  the  last  period. 
Effects  of  compulsory  religious  education  in  the  state 
schools?  Effects  of  an  educational  system  completely  con- 
trolled by  the  state?  Effects  of  a  non-Christian  education. 
Failure  of  German  Christianity  to  ameliorate  German  char- 
acter as  seen  in  events  of  the  present  war. 

§126 

Questions:  Scandinavian  countries  overwhelmingly  Lu- 
theran? Attempts  to  restore  Catholicism?  Relation  of 
state  and  church  in  these  countries?  Religious  freedom? 
Relation  of  the  clergy  to  the  schools?  How  does  Sweden 
compare  with  the  others?  Baptists  and  Methodists  in  each 
of  these  countries?     Theological  scholarship  and  culture? 

Topics:  Contribution  of  the  Scandinavian  countries  to 
freedom  and  culture.  Character  and  culture  of  the  people 
in  each  country. 

§127 

Questions:  Number,  origin  and  recent  growth  of  the 
Lutherans  in  America?  Organization?  Language  used  in 
worship?  Equipment  as  to  theological  education,  religious 
press,  orphanages,  deaconesses,  etc.  ?  Their  work  in  a  prac- 
tical way?  Origin  and  character  of  the  German  Evangeli- 
cals ?     Distinguished   from  the   "  Evangelicals  "  ? 

Topics:  The  Germans  as  an  element  in  American  life  — 
economic,  moral,  religious,  social?  Their  relation  to  the 
struggle  for  temperance  reform?  Significance  of  their  ef- 
fort to  preserve  their  German  language  and  culture  in  Amer- 
ica. 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY     303 
§128 

Questions:  Unity  and  progress  of  the  various  Reformed 
churches  of  the  world?  Their  services  as  compared  to  the 
Lutherans?  ReHgious  freedom  among  them?  ReUgious 
freedom  and  disestabHshment  in  Switzerland?  Proportion 
of  Reformed,  Catholics,  Baptists  and  Methodists?  Schol- 
arship and  practical  service  of  the  Protestants? 

Topics:  Contribution  of  Switzerland  to  the  educational 
theory  of  the  world  in  the  last  period.  Other  contributions. 
Swiss  character  and  its  relation  to  Swiss  religion. 

§129 

Questions:  What  were  the  religious  and  political  condi- 
tions in  the  Netherlands  at  the  beginning  of  the  period? 
Effects  of  the  Napoleonic  wars?  Separation  from  Bel- 
gium ?  Formation  of  the  ''  Christian  Reformed  Church  " 
in  1834?  Progress  of  religious  toleration  and  freedom? 
Relation  of  the  state  to  the  various  churches  ?  Religion  and 
the  public  schools  ?  Scholarship  among  the  Dutch  ?  Foun- 
dation of  private  Christian  schools? 

Topics:  Character  and  achievements  of  the  Dutch.  The 
Dutch  in  the  struggle  for  religious  freedom. 

§130 

Questions:  Coldness  and  skepticism  in  the  Scotch 
church?  Failure  of  the  EvangeHcal  Revival  in  Scotland? 
Later  revival  ?  Friction  over  the  right  of  patronage  ?  Inde- 
pendent churches  originating  in  1733  and  1760?  In  1847? 
The  great  split  in  1843?  Success  and  activities  of  the 
"Free  Church  of  Scotland"?  Further  union  in  1900? 
General  character  and  activity  of  Scottish  Christianity? 
Missions  ? 

Topics:  Contribution  of  the  Scotch  to  theological  schol- 
arship. To  missions  throughout  the  world.  Scottish  char- 
acter as  made  by  Presbyterianism.  Social  and  moral  condi- 
tions. 

§131 

Questions:  Disappearance  of  the  Presbyterians  from 
England  in  the  seventeenth  century?     Reestablishment  in 


304  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN   HISTORY 

the  eighteenth  and  nineteenth?    Present  condition  of  Pres- 
byterianism  in  England? 

§132 

Questions:  Origin  of  American  Presbyterians?  Present 
numbers  and  organizations?  Unions?  Character  of  their 
ministry  and  worship.  Baptism  among  them  ?  Theological 
and  other  schools  ?  Mission  work  ?  Contributions  to  schol- 
arship ? 

Topics:  Presbyterians  as  a  cultural,  moral  and  religious 
factor  in  American  life. 

§133 

Questions:  Lack  of  unity  in  English-speaking  Christian- 
ity? Practical  efficiency  of  same?  Spiritual  unity  as  com- 
pared with  the  Christianity  of  other  lands? 

General  tendency  in  the  English  church?  Comparison 
with  the  Free  churches  of  England  ?  Causes  of  this  relative 
decline?  Effect  of  the  Wesleyan  movement?  The  "  Trac- 
tarian  Movement  "  ?     Skepticism  and  indifference. 

Topics:  Relative  efficiency  of  the  state  and  the  free 
churches  of  England.  Loss  of  privileges  by  the  state 
church.  Present  advantages  of  the  state  church  over  oth- 
ers?    Hardships  of  dissenters  in  England. 

§  134 

Questions:  What  of  the  wealth  of  the  state  church? 
Relation  of  the  king  to  the  church?  Appointment  of  the 
bishops  and  the  lower  clergy?  Influence  of  the  bishops  on 
pubHc  life?  Where  has  the  church  been  disestablished? 
Present  status  of  the  two  older  universities? 

§135 

Questions:  What  of  the  English  educational  system? 
Religious  instruction  in  the  schools?  Number  of  new  uni- 
versities ?    How  do  they  differ  from  the  older  ones  ? 

Topics:  History  and  character  of  the  Universities  of 
Oxford  and  Cambridge.  Character  of  English  education 
as  compared  with  that  of  other  lands.  Influence  of  the 
state  church  on  education.  Influence  of  religion  in  English 
education. 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR    FURTHER   STUDY      305 

§136 

Questions:  Contribution  of  the  state  church  to  preaching 
and  theological  scholarship?  In  what  departments  of  theo- 
logical learning  have  they  made  greatest  contributions? 
New  revision  of  the  Bible  ? 

§137 

Questions:  Activity  of  the  English  church  in  missions? 
Its  societies?  Material  equipment  of  its  missions?  What 
great  organizations  of  the  modern  Christian  world  were 
created  by  members  of  the  state  church  ? 

Topics:  Opportunities  for  great  scholarship  in  the  Eng- 
lish church.  Stimulus  to  great  preaching.  Adaptability  of 
the  state  church  to  modern  conditions.  Influence  of  the 
church  upon  public  and  private  life.  Affinity  of  the  Eng- 
lish with  the  Catholic  church. 

§138 

Questions:  Condition  of  the  Episcopal  church  in  Amer- 
ica after  the  Revolution  and  its  causes  ?  Oragnization  of  the 
church?  What  three  parties  are  in  the  American  as  in 
the  English  Episcopal  church?  Which  party  is  leading? 
What  is  it  in  this  church  which  attracts  members  from  other 
denominations?  What  gives  it  disproportionate  influence 
on  public  life?  Its  attitude  towards  other  Christians? 
Extent  and  success  of  its  mission  work?  How  is  the 
church  organized?  Methods  and  powers  of  the  General 
Convention  ?  Strength  of  the  Episcopal  church  in  the  colo- 
nies?    Its  contributions? 

Topics:  Contribution  of  the  Episcopal  church  to  the  life 
of  the  United  States  since  the  Revolution.  Warriors  and 
statesmen  who  have  been  members.  The  extent  of  democ- 
racy in  its  government.  The  character  of  its  Christian  life. 
The  liberality  of  its  members.  Its  contribution  to  scholar- 
ship, preaching,  etc. 

§139 

Questions:  Baptists  as  an  incorporation  of  those  who 
favor  faith-baptism?     Rapidity  of  their  growth?     Difficul- 


306  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN   HISTORY 

ties  they  have  been  compelled  to  overcome?  Numbers  of 
the  bodies  closely  related  to  the  Baptists?  Faith-baptism 
in  Pedobaptist  bodies  ?  The  equipment  they  have  acquired  ? 
Standing  they  have  attained  ? 

Topics:  Significance  of  fundamental  Baptist  princi- 
ples for  the  progress  of  the  world.  Their  affinity  for  and 
adaptableness  to  the  modern  world.  Baptists  as  the  catho- 
lic type  of  Christianity.  Elements  of  the  ecclesiastical  and 
political  institutions  of  the  world  that  are  opposed  to  them. 
Their  affinity  with  the  social  and  religious  aspirations  and 
strivings  of  the  modern  world.  Baptist  principles  and  mod- 
ern education  and  culture.  Baptist  principles  and  freedom 
of  thought  and  investigation.  Opportunities  of  larger  serv- 
ice now  opening  before  Baptists. 

§  140 

Questions:  Difficulties  of  British  Baptists?  Their  rela- 
tion to  the  beginnings  of  modern  missions?  Their  work  on 
the  foreign  field  ?  Organizations  ?  The  **  Communion 
Question"  among  them?  "Open  membership"?  Their 
present  numbers  and  influence?  Notable  men  produced  by 
them? 

§141 

Questions:  Success  of  the  Baptists  in  the  United  States 
and  its  causes  ?  Present  numbers  and  influence  ?  Their  en- 
trance upon  foreign  mission  work?  Causes  and  effects  of 
anti-missionism  among  them?  Causes  and  eflfects  of  the 
schism  led  by  Mr.  Campbell?  Organization  of  the  South- 
ern Baptist  Convention  ?  Plan  of  organization  as  compared 
with  that  in  the  North?  Extent  and  success  of  Baptist 
missions?  Equipment  in  the  foreign  field?  Organization 
of  Baptists  on  the  home  field?  Educational  institutions? 
Their  learning,  preaching,  etc.  ?  What  of  the  Baptists  in  the 
British  colonies? 

Topics:  Elements  in  American  life  that  are  congenial 
and  favorable  to  the  Baptists.  Contributions  of  the  Bap- 
tists to  the  political  and  religious  life  of  America.  To  the 
moral  reforms.  To  the  missionary  spirit  and  activities. 
Differences  between  Northern  and  Southern  Baptists. 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY      307 
§142 

Questions:  Prosperity  of  and  present  numbers  of  Brit- 
ish Congregationalists  ?  Numbers  on  the  continent? 
Church  independency  ?  Organization  for  cooperative  tasks  ? 
Their  missionary  work?  Their  great  society?  Their  prac- 
tical work  on  the  home  field  ?  Their  contributions  in  schol- 
arship, preaching,  statesmanship  and  other  intellectual  pur- 
suits ? 

Topics:  The  democracy  of  the  Congregationalists.  De- 
mocracy with  cooperation.  Their  emphasis  on  culture. 
Their  influence  on  English  life  and  history.  Their  close 
affiliations  with  the  Baptists. 

§143 

Questions:  Growth  of  American  Congregationalists? 
Losses  and  their  causes?  Rise  of  Unitarianism ?  Contri- 
bution to  the  cause  of  education  in  this  country?  Some  of 
their  many  great  institutions?  Scholars  and  preachers? 
Their  organization?  Their  work  for  foreign  missions? 
Its  extent  and  character. 

Topics:  Why  American  Congregationalists  lead  in  edu- 
cation. Why  they  more  than  others  suffered  from  the  Uni- 
tarian defection.  The  type  and  effectiveness  of  their  de- 
mocracy. Why  they  have  not  spread  to  the  South,  nor 
largely  to  the  West.  Why  they  have  led  in  missionary  ac- 
tivities. 

§  144 

Questions:  Attitude  of  Wesley  toward  separation  from 
the  state  church  of  England?  Why  and  when  did  his  fol- 
lowers separate  ?  What  of  the  prosperity  and  general  char- 
acter of  the  Methodists?  Evangelism  as  compared  with 
education  among  them  ?  Their  theology  ?  Emotion  among 
them?     Schisms?     Recent  unions  in  England? 

Topics:  Effectiveness  of  the  Methodist  type  of  Christian 
life.  Classes  to  which  it  appeals.  Their  contribution  to  the 
life  of  the  world. 

§145 

Questions:  The  Calvinistic  Methodists?  Character  of 
church   government  in   the   Wesleyan   Methodist  Church? 


308  THE   COURSE   OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

Results  ?  Various  Methodist  churches  of  England  and  their 
causes?  Difficulties  met  in  England?  Mission  Work? 
Organization  ? 

§146 

Questions:  Success  of  the  Methodists  in  America  and  its 
causes?  Its  growth  and  present  size?  Various  Methodist 
churches?  Equipment  with  educational  and  other  institu- 
tions? Activities  in  missions  and  other  forms  of  religious 
service?  Effectiveness  of  their  evangelism?  Organization 
of  the  Southern  Methodist  church?  How  organized  in  gen- 
eral ?     Missionary  fields  ? 

Topics:  The  undemocratic  nature  of  Methodist  church 
government.  Comparative  effectiveness  of  Methodists  in 
frontier  and  in  settled  conditions.  Services  to  temperance 
reform.  The  quality  of  Methodist  preaching  and  why. 
Methodist  emotionalism  as  the  source  of  extravagant  sects 
like  the  "  Holy  Rollers." 

§147 

Questions:  Causes  of  the  variety  and  complexity  of 
American  Christianity?  Absence  of  friction  and  bitter  re- 
ligious feeling?  Humane  sentiments?  Effect  of  immigra- 
tion on  American  Christianity?  Character  of  the  Roman 
and  Greek  Catholic  churches  in  relation  to  our  national  life? 
Of  the  Lutheran? 

Topics:  Complexity  of  religious  life  as  an  aid  to  reli- 
gious freedom.  Effects  of  religious  freedom  on  the  purity 
and  vitality  of  church  life.  Religious  freedom  as  an  aid  to 
good  feeling.  Comparative  dangers  and  advantages  of  reli- 
gious uniformity  and  religious  variety.  Gains  and  losses  of 
denominationalism. 

§148 

Questions:  Life  and  work  of  Mr.  Alexander  Campbell? 
Doctrines  and  practices  of  his  followers?  Recent  tenden- 
cies in  the  body?  Their  growth  and  success?  Mission 
work?     Their  organization? 

Why  the  smaller  bodies  are  not  noticed  here?  Life 
and  work  of  Joseph  Smith?  Subsequent  history  of  Mor- 
monism?  Mormons  at  Salt  Lake  City?  Their  growth 
and  extension?     Organization?     Continued  gift  of  proph- 


QUESTIONS   AND   SUGGESTIONS   FOR   FURTHER   STUDY      309 

ecy?  Character  and  contents  of  the  Book  of  Mormon? 
Their  view  of  God?  Other  doctrines?  Polygamy?  The 
"  temple  "  and  the  "  tabernacle  "  ?  Social,  political  and  reli- 
gious effects  of  Mormonism? 

Life  and  work  of  Mrs.  Eddy?  When  and  how  was  the 
Christian  Science  church  founded?  Number  and  character 
of  the  Christian  Scientists?  Doctrines  of  Christian  Sci- 
ence? Relation  of  the  system  to  the  Bible?  Its  real  na- 
ture? Criticism  of  the  system?  Causes  of  its  power? 
How  propagated  and  organized?     Its  healing? 

Work  of  William  Booth?  How  the  Army  is  now  organ- 
ized? Position  of  women?  Its  preaching  and  services? 
Its  two  kinds  of  work?     Its  methods? 

Topics:  Extent  to  which  Mr.  Campbell  and  his  followers 
have  furthered  the  cause  of  Christian  union.  His  views  of 
baptism  and  the  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  His  opposition  to 
missions  and  the  support  of  the  ministry.     To  societies. 

Religious  and  cultural  conditions  out  of  which  Mormon- 
ism grew.  Compare  the  Book  of  Mormon  with  other  re- 
ligious books  of  history.  Mormonism  as  an  economic  or- 
ganization. 

Christian  Science  as  a  symptom  and  a  cure.  Its  healing 
power  ?  Effect  of  its  nonecclesiastical  character.  Its  effects 
on  Christian  morals  and  service. 

Failure  of  the  churches  to  reach  neediest  sections  of  our 
cities.  Success  of  the  Salvation  Army.  Something  for  the 
churches  to  learn  from  the  x\rmy.  Modifications  of  ideals 
and  methods  needed  in  the  churches. 

§149 

Questions:  Organization  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  Its  original 
purpose?  How  has  it  enlarged  this  purpose?  What  are 
some  of  the  benefits  of  the  organization?  Some  of  the  de- 
partments of  its  work?  Opportunity  for  the  layman? 
Present  extent  of  its  work? 

Organization  and  work  of  Y.  W.  C.  A.  ? 

Organization  of  the  young  people  in  the  churches?  Pur- 
pose of  these  organizations  ?     What  are  the  principal  bodies  ? 

What  is  the  Federal  Council  of  the  Churches?  What  is 
its  purpose?     Its  authority?     What  denominations  are  now 


3IO  THE   COURSE  OF   CHRISTIAN    HISTORY 

represented  ?  How  is  its  work  done  ?  What  has  it  accom- 
plished? 

Topics:  ReHgious  and  moral  conditions  within  and  with- 
out the  churches  which  occasioned  the  formation  of  extra- 
ecclesiastical  organizations  such  as  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  Charac- 
ter of  the  Christianity  which  they  represent.  The  distinctly 
religious  element  in  their  work. 

Value  of  the  young  people's  organizations  as  a  means  of 
education  and  training.  Probable  effects  on  the  future 
activities  of  the  churches. 

§150 

Questions:  Present  interest  of  the  world  in  religion? 
Main  religions  of  the  world  with  the  number  of  their  ad- 
herents? Numerical  relation  of  Christians  to  others? 
Numerical  relations  of  the  three  great  groups  of  Christians? 

Topics:  Christians  most  numerous  though  Christianity  is 
next  to  the  youngest  of  the  religions.  Power  and  efficiency 
of  the  Christians  as  compared  with  the  other  religionists  of 
the  world.  Christianity  has  lifted  most  of  its  adherents 
from  barbarism  to  their  present  status  within  the  Christian 
era.  Progress  thus  far  as  a  guarantee  of  success  in  the 
future. 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Suggestions  as  to  Books  that  may  be  used  with  this  volume 
in  reference  work. 

The  better  encyclopedias  are  very  serviceable.  The  fol- 
lowing are  the  best :  The  New  Schaif-Herzog  Encyclopedia 
of  Religious  Knowledge,  N.  Y.,  1908-12;  The  Catholic 
Encyclopedia,  N.  Y.,  1907-12,  particularly  hnportant  for  all 
Catholic  questions;  Encyclopedia  of  Religion  and  Ethics, 
N.  Y.,  1908-,  not  complete,  very  full  and  scholarly  on  all 
matters  treated ;  The  Encyclopedia  Britannica,  eleventh  edi- 
tion, N.  Y.,  1910. 

Source  Books  :  J.  C.  Ayer,  A  Source  Book  of  Ancient 
Church  History,  from  the  Apostolic  Age  to  the  Close  of 
the  Conciliar  Period,  N.  Y.,  1913;  Henderson,  Select  His- 
torical Documents  of  the  Middle  Ages,  London,  1912; 
Robinson,  Readings  in  European  History,  2  vols.,  N.  Y., 
1904  and  1906;  Gee  and  Hardy,  Documents  Illustrative  of 
English  Church  History,  London,  1896.  On  Creeds  consult 
Schaff,  Creeds  of  Christeyidom,  4th  ed.,  N.  Y.,  1905 ;  Walker, 
Creeds  and  Platforms  of  Congregationalism,  N.  Y.,  1893 ; 
McGlothlin,  Baptist  Confessions  of  Faith,  Philadelphia, 
1911. 

Manuals  of  Church  History  covering  the  entire  history 
are  Walker,  A  History  of  the  Christian  Church,  N.  Y.,  19 18, 
latest  and  probably  the  best  history  of  moderate  length; 
Zenos,  Compendium  of  Church  History,  Philadelphia,  1903, 
brief  but  good;  Newman,  A  Manual  of  Church  History,  2 
vols.,  Philadelphia,  1908;  Hurst,  A  History  of  the  Christian 
Church,  2  vols.,  N.  Y. ;  very  full  is  Schaff,  A  History  of  the 
Christian  Church,  N.  Y.,  extending  to  the  Reformation. 

Histories  of  Doctrine  are  Fisher,  History  of  Christian 
Doctrine,  N.  Y.,  1896,  the  best  one  volume  history;  smaller 
works  are  Workman,  Christian  Thought  to  the  Reformation 
(N.  Y.,  191 1 ),  McGiffert,  Protestant  Thought  before  Kant 

311 


312 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 


(N.  Y.,  191 1 )  and  Moore,  History  of  Christian  Thought 
Since  Kant,  N.  Y.,  1912;  McGiffert,  The  Rise  of  Modern 
Religious  Ideas,  N.  Y.,  1915. 

The  literature  of  the  various  periods  and  phases  of 
Church  History  is  boundless  and  extended  bibliographies 
may  be  found  in  all  the  larger  works.  Only  a  few  addi- 
tional books  can  be  mentioned  here.  In  making  up  the  list 
the  needs  of  college  students  have  been  kept  constantly  in 
mind. 

On  the  early  period  consult  Duchesne,  The  Early  History 
of  the  Christian  Church  from  its  Foundation  to  the  End  of 
the  Fifth  Century,  2  vols.,  N.  Y.,  1909,  1912;  Gwatkin, 
Early  Church  History  to  a.  d.  313,  2  vols.,  London,  1909; 
very  important  is  Harnack,  The  Mission  and  Expansion  of 
Christianity  in  the  First  Three  Centuries,  2  vols.,  N.  Y., 
1908;  Dobschiitz,  Christian  Life  in  the  Primitive  Church, 
N.  Y.,  1904;  Workman,  Persecution  in  the  Early  Church, 
London,  1906;  Glover,  The  Conflict  of  Religions  within  the 
Roman  Empire,  London,  1909;  Harnack,  Constitution  and 
Law  of  the  Church  in  the  First  Two  Centuries,  N.  Y.,  1910; 
Lowrie,  Monuments  of  the  Early  Church,  N.  Y.,  1901. 

On  the  Greek  Church  consult  tlie  following:  Hore, 
Student's  History  of  the  Greek  Church,  N.  Y.,  1902; 
Adeney,  The  Greek  and  Eastern  Churches,  N.  Y.,  1908. 

For  the  Middle  Ages  the  following  will  be  found  valual)le: 
Maclear,  A  History  of  Christian  Missions  During  the  Mid- 
die  Ages,  London,  1863  ;  Taylor,  The  Mediccval  Mind,  2  vols., 
N.  Y.,  1914;  Harnack,  Monasficism ;  Its  Ideals  and  Its  His- 
tory, N.  Y..  1895  ;  Workman.  The  Evolution  of  the  Monastic 
Ideal,  London,  1913;  Hefele,  A  History  of  the  Christian 
Councils,  Edinburgh,  1871-96;  The  Cambridge  Medieval 
History,  vol.  H  {Rise  of  the  Saracens  and  the  Foundation 
of  the  Western  Empire),  N.  Y.,  1913;  Bryce,  The  Holy 
Roman  Empire,  London,  1904;  Lagarde,  The  Latin  Church 
in  the  Middle  Ages,  N.  Y.,  1915;  Kriiger,  The  Papacy:  the 
Idea  and  Its  Exponents,  N.  Y.,  1909;  Ludlow,  The  Age  of 
the  Crusades,  N.  Y.,  1896;  Adams,  Civilization  During  the 
Middle  Ages,  N.  Y.,  1900;  Workman,  The  Church  of  the 
West  in  the  Middle  Ages,  London,  1900,  2  vols. 

For  the  Renaissance  and  Reformation  the  student  may 


BIBLIOGRAPHY  313 

consult  the  following:  Workman,  The  Dawn  of  the 
Reformation,  London,  1901 ;  Van  Djke,  Age  of  Renascence, 
N.  Y.,  19CX);  Symonds,  Short  History  of  the  Renaissance 
in  Italy;  Walker,  The  Reformation,  N.  Y.,  1900;  Lind- 
say, A  History  of  the  Reformation,  N.  Y.,  1907;  Ved- 
der.  The  Reformation  in  Germany,  N.  Y.,  1914;  Baird, 
History  of  the  Rise  of  the  Huguenots,  5  vols.,  N.  Y.,  1907. 

For  the  Baptist  Movement  Newman,  A  History  of  Anti- 
P^dobaptism,  Philadelphia,  1897;  Vedder,  A  Short  History 
of  the  Baptists,  Philadelphia,  1907. 

For  the  Reformation  in  Great  Britain  read  Frere,  The 
English  Church  in  the  Reigns  of  Elisabeth  and  James  I, 
N.  Y.,  1904;  Pollard,  Henry  VHI,  London,  1905;  Fleming, 
The  Scottish  Reformation,  London,  1910;  Clark,  History  of 
English  Non-Conformity,  2  vols.,  London,  1913;  Barclay, 
The  Inner  Life  of  the  Religious  Societies  of  the  Common- 
wealth, London,  1879. 

The  complexity  of  modern  Christian  History  and  the 
multiplicity  of  books  on  it  make  it  impossible  to  do  more 
than  refer  to  a  few  books  on  various  phases  of  the  subject. 

On  Missions  consult  Warneck,  Outline  of  the  History  of 
Protestant  Missions,  Edinburgh,  1906;  Faunce,  The  Social 
Aspects  of  Foreign  Missions,  N.  Y.,  1914;  Robinson,  His- 
tory of  Christian  Missions,  N.  Y.,  1915;  Carver,  Missions 
and  Modern  Thought,  N.  Y.,  1908. 

Townsend  (and  others),  A  New  History  of  Methodism, 
2  vols.,  London,  1909;  Church,  The  Oxford  Movement, 
London,  1891. 

Hurst,  History  of  Rationalism,  etc.,  N.  Y.,  1901 ;  Lichten- 
berger,  History  of  German  Theology  in  the  Nineteenth  Cen- 
tury, Edinburgh,  1889;  Swing,  The  Theology  of  Albrecht 
Ritschl,  N.  Y.,  1901. 

For  American  Christianity  the  American  Church  History, 
13  vols.,  by  various  authors,  is  the  best.  It  is  a  history  by 
denominations.  There  is  no  good  comprehensive  view  of 
American  Christianity  as  a  whole ;  Dorchester,  Christianity 
in  the  United  States,  N.  Y.,  1895,  is  probably  the  best. 

Biographies  of  Christian  leaders  are  numberless  and  the 
titles  can  be  obtained  from  encyclopedia  articles  and  from 
the  books  referred  to  above. 


INDEX 


Abgar,  i6 

Abyssinians,  43,  190 
Acolytes,  29 
Adrianople,  85 
Africa,  modern,  171 

north,  subdued,  53,  56 
Agnosticism,  179 
Aidan,  57 
Albigenses,  80 

Alcoholism,  opposition  to,  168 
Alexander  VI,  91  f. 
Alexandria,  Church  of,  183 
America,  Latin,  206 

South,  164 
"  American  Board,"  237 
Anabaptists,  125  f. 
Angles,  56 

Anglican  Church  in  British  Col- 
onies, 229 
Anselm,  77 
Ansgar,  58  f. 
Anthony  of  Thebes,  33 
Antioch,  Church  of,  183 
Apologies,  26 
Apostle  of  Frisians,  58 
Apostle  of  Germany,  58 
Apostles,  work  of,  16 
Arabia,  53 
Arabs,  53 
Archbishop,  28 
Architecture,  Italian,  197 

mediaeval,  79 

Roman,  23 
Arianism,  42,  45,  150 
Armenian  Church,  modem,  188 
Armenians,  24,  43,  46,  68 
Art,  Christian,  98 

early  Christian,  33 
Asceticism,  32,  49  f. 
Asia,  Interior,  86 


Asia  Minor,  evangelized,  16 

Mohammedan,  53 
Athanasius,  45  f. 
Atheism,  179 
Attacks  on  Christianity,  literary, 

26 
Augustine  of  Canterbury,  56 
Austria,  rationalism  in,  153 
Austria-Hungary,       Christianity 

in,  203  f. 
Austrians    expelled    from    Italy, 

204 
Ave  Maria,  79 

Babylonian  Captivity,  gi 
Baptism,  104 

Catholic,  47 

Greek  Catholic,  182 

early,   18 

infant,  30,  175 

preparation  for,  32 

second  period,  29 
Baptist  Missionary  Society,  170, 
231 

Young  People's  Union,  251 
Baptists,  British,  230  f. 

English  (general),  136,  138 

German,  214 

particular,  137,  138 

Seventh  Day,  139 

Six  Principle,  139 
Baptists  in  last  period,  229  ff. 

in  United  States,  232  f. 
Balkan  region,  55 
Bavaria,  58 

Beecher,  Henry  Ward,  236 
Beaton,  Cardinal,  123  f. 
Belgium,  Christianity  in,  202  f. 
Beneficence,  modern,  179 
Benedict  of  Nursia,  50 


315 


3i6 


INDEX 


Benedictine  Order,  50 
Bernard  of  Clairvaux,  ^^ 
Bertha,  56 
Bible,  Coverdale,  129 

Great,  129 

Matthews,  129 

modern  circulation  of,  171 

Society,  American,   172 

Society,   British   and   Foreign, 
172,  227 

translations  of,  96 
Bishop,  28 

Bishops,  as  civil  rulers,  65! 
Bogomiles,  68 
Bohemians,  55,  100 
Boniface,  58 
Books,  ancient,  5 
Booth,  William,  247 
Bossuet,  152  f. 
Bourdaloue,  153 
Britain,    Catholicism    in,    209    f. 

Christianized,  56 
Broad  Church,  224 
Brown  University,  234 
Browne,  Robert,  134  f. 
Bunyan,  John,  138 
Bulgaria,  Church  of,  185  f. 
Bulgars,  55 
Burial,  Christian,  2>2> 

Caliphate  of  Bagdad,  84 

Calvin,  John,  117  f. 

Calvinism,  119  f. 

Calvinism  in  other  lands,  125 

Cambridge,  72 

"  Camp  meeting,"  177 

Campbell,       Alexander,       233  f., 

242  f. 
Canon,  34 
Canossa,  74 

Cantons,   reformed,   115 
Carey,  William,  170  f.,  231 
Catacombs,  33 
Catherine  of  Aragon,  128  f. 
Catholic  Church  government,  103 
Celsus,  26 

Chalmers,  Thomas,  220 
Charlemagne,  58,  63  f. 
Charles  I,  134 
Charles  II,  136 


Charles  V,  no,  128  f. 
Chaucer,  98 
Chautauqua,  172 

China,    Protestant    missions    in, 
160,  171 

Christianity  in,  43 
Christian  bodies,  smaller,  248 
"  Christian  Endeavor,"  250  f. 
Christian  life,  corruption  of,  66 
'*  Christian    Reformed    Church," 

218 
Christian  Science,  244 
Christian  year,  49 
Christ,  person  of,  45 
Christianity,  American,  241 

and  Judaism,  19 

as  a  force,  11 

first  century,  17 

mediated  by  Jesus,  12 

modern  opposition  to,  179 

new  type  of  life,  12 

Scottish  type,  57 
Christians,  242  f. 
Christmas,  49 
Chrysostom,  48 
Church  and  state,  74  f. 
Church  buildings,  31,  48 

Catholic,  27 

conceptions  of,  27 

Eastern  Orthodox,  181  f. 

Greek      Catholic,      55  f.,      102, 
181  f. 

Missionary  Society,  22"] 

of  England,  223  f. 

Protestant  Episcopal,  in  U.  S., 
227  f. 

Roman  Catholic,  102 

Russian,  87 

unity  of,  27 
Churches,  heretical,   187  f. 

Lutheran,  212  f. 

Modern  Reformed,  217 

officers,  18 

organization,  17 

sixteen  Greek  Catholic,  182  f. 
Circuit  riders,  Methodist,  159 
Civil  life,  21 

Class  leaders,  Methodist,  159 
Clovis,  42 
Cologne,  72 


INDEX 


317 


Colonies,  Baptists  in,  234 
British,  Catholicism  in,  210 
British,     Presbyterianism     in, 

221 
French,  200 
Italian,  196 

Colonization,  modern,  163 
Protestant,  147 
Spanish  and  Portuguese,  146 

Columban,  42,  57 

Columbus,  97 

Common  Prayer,  Book  of,  130 

Communion,  open,  231 

Conception  of  Christian  history, 
I 

Conference,    annual    Methodist, 

Confession,  private,  67 
Confessional,  106 
Confirmation,  104 
Congregationalism,  134  f. 
Congregationalists,       American, 

235 

British,  234  f. 
"  Congress  of  Ems,"  153 
"  Congress  of  Vienna,"  192 
Constance,  Council  of,  91 
Constantine,  23,  24,  27,  41,  48 
Constantinople,    patriarchate    of, 
183 

founded,  40,  48,  55,  70,  85 
Controversies,  theological,  45 
Convention,     Northern     Baptist, 

Southern  Baptist,  233 
Copts,  189 
Cornelius,  37  ^ 
Corpus  Christi,  79 
Council,  Ecumenical,  45 
Councils,  44  f. 
Courts,  church,  43 
Covenant,  124 
Cranmer,  Thomas,  l3Df. 
Creed,  Apostles',  35 
Critical  spirit,  95  f. 
Cromwell,  Oliver,  135 
Crusades,  69  f. 
Cuba,  208 
Cybele,  23 
Cyril,  55 


Cyprus,  Church  of,  183 

"  Danish-Halle     Mission,"      160 

Dante,  98 

Dark  Ages,  52 

Deaconesses,  German,  214 

Deism,  150 

Democracy,  modern,  163 

Denmark,  58  f. 

Christianity  in,  215 
Diocletian,  23,  S7 
"  Disciples,"  242  f. 
Discipline,  32 
Discoveries,  97 
Disestablishment,    modern,     170, 

225 
Disorders,  third  century,  22 
Divinity  of  Christ,  20 
Divisions,  Christian,  180  f. 
Divorce,  32,  67 
Divorce  of  Henry  VHI,  128 
Doctrines,  Anabaptist,  126  f. 

Calvinistic,  119  f. 

Christian,  in  second  period,  34 

early  Christian,  20 

Lutheran,  112 

Mohammedan,  54 

Zwinglian,  116  f. 
Dominicans,  76 
Donation  of  Constantine,  65 
Donatists,  37 
Donatus,  37 
Dueling,  decline  of,  169 

Eddy,  Mrs.  Mary  B.  G.,  244  f. 
Education  in  England,  225  f . 

modern  popular,  155  f.,  166 

new,  95 

third  century,  23 
Edward  VI,  130 
Edwards,  Jonathan,  157 
Egypt,  subdued,  53 
Eighteenth  century,  151 
Elizabeth  of  England,  124,  131  f. 
Empire,  Latin,  70 

revived,  63  f. 
English  in  France,  89 
English  Church,  132 
England,  Presb)rterians  in,  321 
Epiphany,  31 


3i8 


INDEX 


Epworth,  158 
"Epworth  League,"  251 
Ethelbert,  56 
Eucharist,   104 

Evangelicals  in  America,  217 
Evangelism,  madern,  176  f. 
Excommunication,  32 
Exposure  of  children,  32 
Extreme  Unction,  105 

Farel,  118 

Federal    Council    of    Churches, 

251 
Fenelon,  153 
Feudalism,  89 
Finances,  church,  28 
Fish,  symbolic  use  of,  34 
Fox,  George,  139 
France,   Christianity  in,    197  f. 

Reformation  in,  121  f. 
Franciscans,  75  f. 
Franks,  40,  42,  63 
Free  churches,  English,  224 
Frederick  Barbarossa,  74  f. 
Frederick  IV,  160 
Free  Church  of  Sccrtland,  220 
Friars,  75 

Friday,  worship  on,  54 
Friends,  Society  of,  139 
Friesland,  s'S 
Frisians,  57 
Future  life,  Catholic,  106 

Gains  and  losses,  Catholic,  193^- 

Gains  of  Catholics,  143 

Gainsborough,   135 

"Gallican  Liberties,"  152 

Gallipoli,  97 

Gambling,  opposition  to,  168  f. 

Gaul,  40 

General    Convcntic«n,    Episcopal, 

228 
Genghis  Kahn,  83 
Georgia,  conversion  of,  43 
Gentiles  receive  Christianity,  14 
German  Empire,  164 

expansion  of,  39 

Catholicism  in,  208 

Christianity  in,  213 

tribes,  23 
Gladiatorial  games,  51 


Gnosticism,  37 
Gods,  ancient,  6 
Good  works,  105 
Goths,  40 

Government,    modern    constitu- 
tional, 162 
Greece,  Church  of,  185 
Greek  civilization,  3 
Greeks,  evangelized,  14 
Greenland,  59 
Gregory  VII,  7S 
Gunpowder,  97 

Haldanes,  219 

Halle,  University  of,  157 

Hanseatic  League,  90 

Heathenism,  suppression  of,  41 

Heaven,  106 

Hegira,  53 

Helena,  48 

Hell,  106 

Helwys,  Henry,  137 

Henricans,  80 

Henry  the  Fowler,  64 

Henry  IV,  121  f. 

Henry  VIII,  128 

Heresies,  36,  103 

High  Church,  224 

Hildebrand,  73 

Holland,  123 

Christianity  in,  218 
"Holy  Club,"  158 
Holy  Roman  Empire,  64 
Holy  Spirit,  procession  of,  60 
Holy  Synod,  184 
House  of  Bishops,  229 
House  of  Clerical  and  Lay  Dele- 
gates, 229 
Huguenots,  122 
Humanism,  99 
Hus,  John,  lOD,  no 

Iceland,  59 
Iconoclasm,  60  f. 
Ikons,  182 
"Illumination,"  150 
Image  worship,  60  f . 
Images,  removed  from  churches, 
61 
adoration  of,  61 


INDEX 


319 


Immaculate  Conception,  79,  192 
India,  Christianity  in,  43 

Protestant  missions  in,  160 
Indies,  West,  207  f. 
Indulgences,  dj,  107 
Infant  baptism,  decline  of,  177  f . 
Innocent  III,  Tz 
Inquisition,  81  f. 
Instruction,  Christian,  31 
Intellectual     freedom,     modern, 

154 
Inventions,  97 
lona.  Island  of,  42,  56 
Irene,  61 
Ireland,  42 

Catholicism  in,  209  f. 
Isis,  23 

Isle  of  Saints,  42 
Italy,  Church  of,  195  f. 

modern,  164 

unification  of,  195  f. 
Ivan  III,  88 

Jacobites,  189 

James  I,  125 

Janizaries,  8^ 

Jansenism,  153 

Japan,    Protestant    missions    in, 

160,  171 
Jerusalem,  captured,  53 

Church  of,  183 

Kingdom  of,  70 
Jesuits,  141  f.,  209 

suppression  of,  153 
Jesus  of  Nazareth,  9 

opposition  to,  11 

Society  of,  141  f. 

teaching  of,  10 
Jewish  civilization,  3 
Jews,  249 

conversion  of,  94 

in  Christian  lands,  92  f. 

persecution  of,  93 
Joan  of  Arc,  89 
Fohn  Duns  Scotus,  77 
[ohn  of  England,  75 
fohn  the  Baptist,  9 
fohn,  work  of,  17 
Joseph  II,  153 
Judaizers,  19 


Judson,  Adoniram,  232 
Judson,  Anne  Hasseltine,  175 
Julian,  40 

Justification,  doctrine  of,  20 
Jutes,  Christianized,  56 

Kent,  56 

Knox,  John,  123  f. 

Kulturicampf,  208  f. 

Laity,  decline  of,  28,  43 
Lateran  Council,  TJ 
Latimer,  131 
Latin  Church,  193 

use  of,  (i"] 
Latins,  3 

Latter  Day  Saints,  242  f. 
Laud,  Archbishop,  136 
Law,  canon,  43 

church,  43 
Laymen,  activities  of,  173 
Learning,  Catholic,  195 
Leipsic,  University  of,  157 
Leo  III,  61 
Leo  V,  61 
Leo  X,  92 

Liberty  of  conscience,  25 
Libraries,  ancient,  5 
Life,  Christian,  decline  of,  49 

early  Christian,  20  f. 
Limbo,  106 
Literature,  Christian,  38 

German,  43 

Greek,  4 

Latin,  4 

mediaeval,  72 

popular,  72 
Living  conditions,  modern,  165 
Lombards,  40,  63 
London  Missionary  Society,  235 
Lord's  Day,  31 
Lord's  Supper,  Catholic,  47 

early,  18 

second  period,  30 
Lottery,  169 
Louis  XIV,  152 
Low  church,  224 
Loyola,  Ignatius,  141 
Luther,  108  f.,  115 


530 


INPEX 


Lutheranism,  German,  lopf. 

other  lands,  113 
Lutherans  in  America,  ai6 

Machinery,  modem  use  of,  166 

Mainz,  58 

Mani,  38 

Manichaeism,  38 

Mariolatry,  61 

Marriage,  32,  33,  105 

civil,  207 
Mary  the  Virgin,  79 
Mary,  Queen  of  Scots,  123  f. 
Mary  Tudor,  131 
Maximilla,  36 
Mayflower,  135 
Mass,  105 

sacrifice  of,  77 
Massillon,  153 
Meats  offered  to  idols,  21 
Mecca,  52 

Membership,  open,  231 
Mercia,  56 
Methodists,  158  f.,  237 

American,  239  f. 

English,  238  f. 
Methodius,  55 
Metropolitan,  28 
Middle  Ages,  52 
Militarism,  modern,  166 
Milton,  John,  135 
Missa  (mass),  32 
Mission  work,  Paul's,  16 
Missionaries,  Anglo-Saxon,  57  f. 
Missions,  American  Baptist,  232 

Anglican,  227 

Catholic,  143  f. 

Congregational,  235,  237 

decay  of,  92 

English  Baptist,  231 

in  the  first  century,  13 

modern  Catholic,  211 

modern  Protestant,   160,   170  f. 

Methodist,  240  f. 

Protestant  Episcopal,  228 
Mithra,  23 
Modernism,  194  f. 
Mohammed,  52  f. 
Mohammedanism,    52  f.,    55,    65, 
84,  88  f.,  146 


Mohammedans,  71 
Monasteries,  50 
Monasticism,  33,  66,  75,  194 

abolished  in  France,  199 

English,  abolished,  130 

reformed,  144 

Russian,  88 
Mongols,  83,  86 
Moors,  53,  89 
Montanists,  36 
Montanus,  36 
Monte  Casino,  196! 
Morals,  ancient,  5 
Moravians,  55 
Mormons,  242  f. 
Mosques,  54 
Mother  Church,  244,  346 

Nantes,  Edict  of,  122 
Napoleon,  191  f. 
Nestorians,  189 
Netherlands,  reform  of,  122 
New  spirit,  rise  of,  95  f. 
Nicea,  45 

"  Normal  Year,"  146 
Normandy,  71 
Normans,  71 
Northumbria,  56 
Norway,  58  f. 

Christianity  in,  215 
Norwich,  135 
Novatian,  37 
Novatianism,  37 

Officials,  unworthy,  67 

Old  Catholic  Church,  192 

Olga,  Princess,  55 

Ordination,   105 

Organ,  use  of,  67 

Origen,  26 

Orphan  House,  Halle,  157 

Orthodox  Church,  growth  of,  187 

Orthodoxy,  151 

Ostracism,  32 

Otto  the  Great,  64 

Oxford,  72 

Oxford  Movement,  224 

Pachomius,  33 
Paine,  Tom,  15I 


INDBX 


321 


Palestine,  53 

Exploration  of,  171 
Pantheism,   179 
Papacy,  decline  of,  go 
Papal  power,  growth  of,  73  f. 
Papal  State,  62,  65 
Parties  Evangelical,  68 
Passover,  31 
Patriarch,  28 
Patrick,  42 

Patrimonium  Petri,  62 
Patronage,  219 
Paulicians,  68 
Penance,  104 
Pentecost,  31,  49 
Persia,  Mohammedan,  53 
Persia,  conversion   of,  42 
Persian  Empire  22 
Persecution,  early  Christian,  21, 

25  f.. 
Persecutions,  Catholic,  80 
Peter  Lcrmbard,  'jy 
Peter,  work  of,  14,  44 
Petrobrusians,  80 
Philip  II,  114,  122 
Philippine  Islands,  207  f. 
Philosophy,   Ancient,   6 
Pietism,   156 

"  Pilgrim's  Progress,"  138 
Pippin,  57,  63 
Poland,  83 

Political  freedom,  modern,  155 
Poor  men  of  Lyons,  80 
Pope,  rise  of,  44 
Portugal,  88 

Christianity  in,  201  f. 
Preaching,  Christian,  31,  47 

Revival  of,  78 
Predestination,  Mohammedan,  54 
Presbyterianism,    119  f. 

in  British  Colonies,  221  f. 

in    England,   221  f. 

in  United  States,  222 
Presiding  Bishops,  229 
Priests,  Christian,  28 
Printing,  invention  of,  104 
Priscilla,  36 
Property,  Church,  28 
Protestant      Episcopal      Church, 
227  f. 


Protestantism,  Latest,  212 
Protestants,  French,  199  f. 
"  Protracted  Meeting,"  177 
Providence,  138 
Prussia,  Modern,  164 
Public  Life  of  Christians,  33 
Purgatory,  114,  122 
Puritanism,  133 

Quakers,    139,    173! 
Quakers,  in  America,  140 
persecution  of,  139 

Raikes,  Robert,  227 
Rationalism,  150,  152,  153 
Ravenna,  40 
Readers,  29 
Rebellicm  of  Jews,  8 
Relief  Church,  219,  220 
Religion,  natural,  150 
Religions,  Ancient,  6 
Religious  Forces  To-day,  252 
Religious  Freedom,  Modern,  155, 

169  f. 
Republic,  the  modern,  163 
Revival,  American,  157 

British,  158  f. 

German,   156 
Revolution,  French,  191 1 
Rice,   Luther,   232 
Rhode  Island,  138 
Ridley,  Bishop,  131 
Robber  Barons,  90 
Robinson,  John,  135,  136 
Roman  Empire,  2 

.Decline  of,  23 

Greatest  extent,  22 

Fall  of,  39 
Roman  Republic,  6 
Rome,  Bishop  of,  44 

Burned,  8 

Church  of,  44 
Romulus  Augustulus,  40 
Roumania,  Church  of,  186 
Russia,  87,  163 
Russians,  converted,  55 
Russia,  Tartar  invasion  of,  83 
Russian  Church,  Modern,  183  f. 

Sabbath,  31 


322 


INDEX 


Sacraments,  29 

Roman  Catholic,  104 
Saints  Days,  79 
Saint  Bartholomew,  121 

Sophia,  48 
Salvation  Army,  175,  247 
Saracens,  53 

Saul  of  Tarsus  (Paul),  15,  44 
Savonarola,  100 
Saxons,  Christianized,  56,  58 
Scandinavia,  58  f.,  71 

Catholicism,  209 
Schism,  Eastern,  59 

Papal,  91 
Scholarship,   English,  226 
Schools,    Catechetical,    34 

Cathedral,  72 

Christian,  48 

Monastic,  66 
Schmalkald,   145 
"  Science  and  Health,"  245 
Scotch,  Conversion  of,  42  f. 
Scotland,  Christianity  in,  219 

Reform  of,  123 
Scrooby,  135 

Scriptures,  translations  of,  24,  67 
Seceder  Church,  219 
Seminaries,  Baptist,  234 

Congregational,   236 

French,    122 

Presbyterian,  222 
Serfdom,  165  f.,  168 
Servia,  Church  of,  186 
Servians,  55 
Sicily,  71 
Sinai,   186 
Singing,  31 
Skepticism,  Ancient,  7 

Passing  away,  23 

Rise  of  modern,  49 
Slavery,  32,  165  f.,  168 
Slavs,  55,  58 
Smith,  John,   135  f. 

Joseph,  242 
Social  Evil,  crusade  on,  169 
Society,  American  Baptist  Pub- 
lication, 233 
Socinians,  149 
Spain,  89,  163 

Christianity  in,  200  f. 


Spain   (continued) 

Invaded,  53,  58 

Protestant  Missions  in,  joi 

Reformation  in,  114 
Spener,  P.  J.,  156 
State  and  Church,  74  f. 
State,  functions  of  modern,  164  f. 
Statistics,   Baptist,  233 
Subdeacons,  29 
Suffrage,  right  of,  168 
Sunday,  51 
Sunday  School,  172 
Superintendents,   no 
Superstitions,  24 
Sussex,  56 
Sweden,   58  f. 

Christianity  in,  215  f, 
Switzerland,  57,  114 

Christianity  in,  217 
Syllabus  of  Errors,  192 
Symbols,   Christian,  33  f. 
Synod,   45 
Syria,  subdued,  53 

Tamerlane,  84 
Tartars,  83,  87 
Temples,   ancient,   5 
Temporal   Power,   191  f. 
Theology,   Catholic,   76  f.,    106 
Thirty  Years'  War,    145 
Thomas  Aquinas,  77 
Thuringia,  58 
Toleration,   178 
Toleration,  Act  of,  137 
Tractarian  Movement,  224 
Trajan,  22 
Tranquebar,  160 
Transubstantiation,  77 
Trent,  Council  of,  142 
Trinity,  45 

"True  Discourse,"  26 
Turkey,  Modern,  164,  188 
Turks,  70,  84 
rise  of,  69 

Ulfilas,  43 
Uniats,   190  f.,  205 
Union,   Christian,   180  f. 
Unitarianisra,  179 
Unitarians,  35,  46 


INDEX 


323 


Unitas  Fratrum,  161 
"United    Brethren,"    161 
United    Free    Church    of    Scot- 
land, 220 
United  Presbyterian  Church,  220 
United    States,    Catholicism    in, 

210  f. 
Universities,  ancient,  5 

English,  225  f. 

Mediaeval,  72 

Vandals,  40,  42 
Vatican,  196  f. 
Vatican  Council,  192 
Vernacular,  rise  of,  97 
Vice,  crusade  on,  169 
Vincent  Ferrer,  94 
Visigoths,  42 
Vladimir,  Prince,  55 
Voltaire,  151 
Vows,  monastic,  51 
Vulgate,  Latin,  144 

Wafer,  adoration  of,  79 
Waldenses,  80,   196 
Waldo,   Peter,  80 
Wales,  56 

Wars  of  Religion,  144  f. 
Wartburg,   no 
Wealth,  church,  107 
Wesley,  Charles,  158  f. 


Wesley,  John,  158  f.,  224 
West  Indies,  161 
Westphalia,    145  f. 
Whitby,  57 

Whitefield,  George,  157 
William  of  Normandy,  71 
William  of  Orange,  123 
Williams,  George,   173,  249 

Roger,   138,  155,  160 
Willibrod,  57  f. 
Winifried,  57 
Women,   activities   of,    174  f. 

progress  of,  167  f. 
Worship,  ancient,  6 

Catholic,  48  f.,  105 

early,  18 

Greek  Catholic,  59  f. 

Liturgical,  30 
Wycliffe,  John,  99 

Young  Men's  Christian  Associ- 
ation,  173  f.,  227,  249  f. 

Young  People's  Societies,  250  f. 

Young,  the  religion  of,  175  f. 

Young  Women's  Christian  As- 
sociation, 250  f. 

Zinzendorf,  161 

Ziirich,  115 

Zwingli,  Ulrich,  ii4f. 


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The  course  of  Christian  history. 

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